


Shifting Realities

by Mystery_Penman



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Bad assed kids, F/M, Humour, M/M, Major character death - Freeform, Romance, The Avengers are highly annoyed by the Barton Triplets, dimension travelling, many OCs - Freeform, ooc
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-05-29
Updated: 2014-11-04
Packaged: 2018-01-26 23:28:55
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 27
Words: 27,750
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1706507
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mystery_Penman/pseuds/Mystery_Penman
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Avengers are disbanding, they can't work together anymore, but on their last mission they're blasted to a dimension where the Avengers 'worked' and were transferred to the next generation.<br/>Now, it's either learn to work together, or be stuck in this reality forever.<br/>(Updated when computer works)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Always check the first chapter, it's a guide in case you, the readers, lose track of the characters and it may change with each update.  
> Tumblr: http://ask-stony-family.tumblr.com

**Just updated! I've added the characters who weren't originally in this story! Thank you _Michelle_ for pointing this out to me! Love ya!**

**Name**

| 

**Age/Birthday**

| 

**Mutant**

| 

**Powers**

| 

**Hero Name**

| 

**Sexuality/  
Orientation**

| 

**Relationship Status**

| 

**Sire**

| 

**Carrier**  
  
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---  
  
Bianca Jane Banner

| 

2nd June, 1985

29

| 

NO

| 

Genius IQ, Gamma Irradiation

| 

She-Hulk

| 

Straight

Carrier

| 

Married to Jack Carter

| 

Bruce Banner

| 

Betty Ross  
  
Francis Edward Barton

| 

September 2nd, 1986

28

| 

NO

| 

Enhanced eyesight, Mathematical Prodigy, enhanced reflexes

| 

Hawkeye

| 

Bisexual

Sire

| 

Married to Leo Stark

| 

Clint Barton

| 

Darcy Lewis  
  
Aaron Winfield Vyacheslav Barnes

| 

15th January,

1987

27

| 

NO

| 

Cybernetic Arm, accelerated healing

| 

Winter Soldier

| 

Bisexual/

Beta

| 

Single

| 

James Barnes

| 

Natasha Barnes  
  
James Christopher Rogers

| 

28th April, 1988

26

| 

YES

| 

Mutated SSS, accelerated healing, metamorphosis, superhuman strength, agility, senses and reflexes. Genius IQ, Indestructible Vibranium Shield

| 

Captain America/ Askari

| 

Bisexual/

Sire-Dom

| 

Widowed

| 

Steve Rogers

| 

Tony Stark-Rogers  
  
Rebecca Marie Barnes

| 

22nd August, 1991

23

| 

YES

| 

Accelerated healing, superhuman reflexes, Darkness Manipulation

| 

Black Widow

| 

Straight/

Carrier-Dom

| 

Single

| 

James Barnes

| 

Natasha Barnes  
  
Leonard Chester Stark

| 

3rd September, 1992

22

| 

NO

| 

Extremis, accelerated healing, Genius IQ, weaponised suit of armour.

| 

Iron Man

| 

Gay/

Beta

| 

Married to Francis Barton

| 

Steve Rogers

| 

Tony Stark-Rogers  
  
Mikaela Virginia Rogers

| 

12th March, 1994

20

| 

NO

| 

Mutated SSS, accelerated healing, genius IQ, superhuman strength, agility, senses and reflexes.

| 

Miss America

| 

Straight/

Carrier-Dom

| 

Single

| 

Steve Rogers

| 

Tony Stark-Rogers  
  
Kelsie Anne Stark

| 

4th June, 1998

16

| 

YES

| 

Extremis, Electrokinesis accelerated healing, Genius IQ, weaponised suit of armour.

| 

Rescue

| 

Bisexual/

Carrier

| 

Single

| 

Steve Rogers

| 

Tony Stark-Rogers  
  
Blaine Anderson Stark-Rogers

| 

4th June, 1998

16

| 

YES

| 

Telekinesis, Genius IQ.

| 

 

| 

Gay/

Sire

| 

In a relationship with Kurt Hummel

| 

Steve Rogers

| 

Tony Stark-Rogers  
  
Katherine Haley Barton

| 

February 2nd, 1999

15

| 

NO

| 

Enhanced eyesight, mathematical prodigy , enhanced reflexes

| 

Long Shot

| 

Bisexual/

Carrier

| 

Single

| 

Clint Barton

| 

Darcy Lewis  
  
Ian Michael Barnes

| 

31st July, 2000

14

| 

YES

| 

Flight, accelerated healing, telepathy, air manipulation

| 

Twister

| 

Straight/Sire

| 

Single

| 

James Barnes

| 

Natasha Barnes  
  
Peter Benjamin Stark-Rogers

| 

14th August, 2000

14

| 

NO

| 

Spider-powers, Genius IQ

| 

Spiderman

| 

Bisexual/

Sire

| 

In a relationship with Gwen Stacy

| 

Richard Parker (adopted by Steve Rogers)

| 

Mary Parker (adopted by Tony Stark-Rogers)  
  
Carter Buchanan Stark-Rogers

| 

12th October, 2001

13

| 

YES

| 

Pyrokinesis, accelerated healing, mutated SSS, Genius IQ

| 

Fireball

| 

Bisexual/

Sire

| 

Single

| 

Steve Rogers

| 

Tony Stark-Rogers  
  
Hunter Kyle Barton

| 

1st April, 2005

9

| 

YES

| 

Enhanced eyesight, Teleportation, Super speed

| 

Wink

| 

Sire

| 

Single

| 

Clint Barton

| 

Darcy Lewis  
  
Phillip James Barton

| 

1st April, 2005

9

| 

YES

| 

Enhanced eyesight, super speed, invulnerability

| 

Clink

| 

Sire

| 

Single

| 

Clint Barton

| 

Darcy Lewis  
  
Fletcher Markus Barton

| 

1st April, 2005

9

| 

YES

| 

Enhanced eyesight, Invisibility, Super speed

| 

Blink

| 

Carrier

| 

Single

| 

Clint Barton

| 

Darcy Lewis  
  
Sarah Maria Stark-Rogers

| 

23rd July, 2006

8

| 

NO

| 

Mutated SSS, Genius IQ

| 

 

| 

Beta

| 

Single

| 

Steve Rogers

| 

Tony Stark-Rogers  
  
Dorothy Sonny Barnes

| 

31st October, 2007  
7

| 

YES

| 

Mutated SSS, Ice Manipulation

| 

 

| 

Beta

| 

Single

| 

James Barnes

| 

Natasha Barnes  
  
Jessica Erin Barnes

| 

31st October, 2007  
7

| 

YES

| 

Mutated SSS, Sonic Booms

| 

 

| 

Beta

| 

Single

| 

James Barnes

| 

Natasha Barnes  
  
Timothy Montgomery Barnes

| 

5th December, 2010

4

| 

NO

| 

Mutated SSS

| 

 

| 

Carrier

| 

Single

| 

James Barnes

| 

Natasha Barnes  
  
Andrew Brian Stark-Barton

| 

25th May, 2013

1

| 

NO

| 

None Shown

| 

 

| 

Sire

| 

Single

| 

Francis Barton

| 

Leo Stark  
  
Gracie Amanda Stark-Rogers

| 

12th June, 2014

Two Months old

| 

N/A

| 

Adorableness, mutated SSS

| 

 

| 

Carrier

| 

Single

| 

Steve Rogers

| 

Tony Stark-Rogers  
  
**SIRES**

| 

**AGE**

| 

**DOM**

| 

**BETAS**

| 

**AGE**

| 

**CARRIERS**

| 

**AGE**

| 

**DOM**  
  
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---  
  
Steve Rogers

| 

52

| 

*

| 

Leo Stark

| 

22

| 

Tony Stark-Rogers

| 

44

| 

*  
  
James Barnes

| 

49

| 

 

| 

Aaron Barnes

| 

27

| 

Bianca Banner

| 

29

| 

   
  
James Rogers

| 

26

| 

*

| 

Phillip Barton

| 

9

| 

Mikaela Rogers

| 

20

| 

*  
  
Francis Barton

| 

28

| 

 

| 

Clint Barton

| 

51

| 

Rebecca Barnes

| 

23

| 

*  
  
Blaine Stark-Rogers

| 

16

| 

 

| 

Bruce Banner

| 

59

| 

Kelsie Stark

| 

16

| 

   
  
Ian Barnes

| 

14

| 

 

| 

Sarah Stark-Rogers

| 

8

| 

Kurt Hummel

| 

17

| 

   
  
Hunter Barton

| 

9

| 

 

| 

Maria Hill

| 

53

| 

Kate Barton

| 

15

| 

   
  
Andrew Stark-Barton

| 

1

| 

 

| 

Sam Wilson

| 

48

| 

Mary Parker

| 

26

| 

   
  
Richard Parker

| 

34

| 

 

| 

Gwen Stacy

| 

14

| 

Fletcher Barton

| 

9

| 

   
  
Nick Fury

| 

66

| 

*

| 

Peter Parker

| 

14

| 

Jane Foster

| 

51

| 

   
  
Carter Stark-Rogers

| 

13

| 

 

| 

Darcy Lewis

| 

48

| 

 

| 

 

| 

   
  
 

 

**The Avengers Earth 2013469**

Leader – Colonel James Rogers – Captain America/Hound – **ALPHA  
** Second-in-Command – Captain Sebastian Barnes – Winter Soldier - **ALPHA  
** Leo Stark – Iron Man – **ALPHA  
** Lieutenant Mikaela Rogers – Miss America – **ALPHA  
** Bianca Banner – She-Hulk – **ALPHA  
** Major Francis Barton – Hawkeye – **ALPHA  
** Rebecca Barnes – Black Widow – **ALPHA  
** Torrun Thorsdottir – **ALPHA**

Luke Cage – Power Man – **BETA  
** Carol Danvers – Miss Marvel – **BETA**   
Hank Pym – Ant Man/Giant Man – **BETA**   
Janet Pym – Wasp – **BETA  
** T’Challa – Black Panther – **BETA  
** Keith Remsen – Night Mask – **BETA  
** Eden Fesi – Manifold – **BETA**

 

 

**Young Avengers Earth 2013469**

Leader – Eli Bradley – Patriot – **ALPHA  
** Kelsie Stark – Rescue – **ALPHA  
** Kate Barton – Long Shot – **ALPHA  
** Carter Stark-Rogers – Fireball – **ALPHA  
** Ian Michael Barnes – Twister – **ALPHA  
** Tommy Shepherd – Speed – **ALPHA**  
Teddy Altman – Hulkling – **ALPHA**  
Billy Kaplan – Wiccan – **ALPHA**  
 **  
**  
Leader – Peter Stark-Rogers – Spiderman – **BETA  
** Ava Ayala – White Tiger – **BETA  
** Danny Rand – Iron Fist – **BETA  
** Sam Alexander – Nova – **BETA**  
David Alleyne – Prodigy – **BETA**  
Noh-Varr – Marvel Boy – **BETA**


	2. 2013469

**PART ONE**

 

Tony signed his signature at the bottom of the mission report and set it atop the growing pile of paperwork on the side of his desk and sighed, a headache beginning to form behind his eyes and he rubbed his eyes behind his glasses.

It was early in the afternoon on a cool late October Thursday; it would be a cold winter and likely a white Christmas in New York.

Tony was pulled from thoughts of Christmas by his phone blaring _Eagle Rock_.

“Hey, Baby,” Tony smiled as he answered.

_“Hey, Dad,”_ James answered, _“I've just dropped that paperwork you wanted at the Mansion, it’s in the kitchen on the island and I’m heading to Base for the briefing now.”_

Tony sighed as he remembered his eldest son and his _nephew_ , Aaron Barnes, were going on a two week mission in Afghanistan tomorrow. “You be careful, okay Baby?” He told the Super Soldier. “I love you, James.”

_“I will, Dad. Promise,”_ James said softly and Tony could imagine the smile on James’ face, just the smallest quirk of his lips as his eyes, the same gold-flecked brown as Tony’s, brightened and softened. _“I love you, too. I’ll see you and Pops in two weeks, okay?”_

“If I don’t I’m dragging you back home by your ear, James,” Tony threatened lightly and James laughed. _“I’m sure the boys at Bragg would get a kick out of that. I’m going to be late. Bye, Dad.”_

“Bye, Baby,” Tony said before the connection cut and he swallowed past the slight tightness in his throat. _He’s not a little boy anymore_ , he told himself sternly, _he’s thirty in four years; he’s a soldier. Get a hold of yourself, Stark!_

Tony picked up his phone again and opened his contacts list, scrolling down to find his husband’s number, when the screens on his desk and the walls of his office lit up with every warning and emergency code in SHIELD and the alarm blared loudly through the building before he cut it off with _Extremis_.

“Sir!” Gasped a young agent, barely into his twenties, as he burst into Tony’s office, “Sir…there are…are people in the Main Console Room…they…they just appeared!”

Tony stood as he connected to his Deputy Director’s comm. “Contact General Rogers,” he told the Agent, “tell him Code Alpha-Twelve-Mongoose, got it?”

“Yes, Sir,” the Agent nodded jerkily. “What about the Avengers, Sir?”

“The Avengers work outside of SHIELD, Agent,” Tony said, guessing he was new and hadn’t learned that, though several of the Avengers and Young Avengers were members of SHIELD and many of the SHIELD higher ups were Ex-Avengers, the Avengers were a separate group so in case anything were to happen to SHIELD, the Avengers wouldn’t be affected as much as they were when the original SHIELD fell and HYDRA was reborn. “We contact them only if the world is at stake.”


	3. MCU Steve

Steve rubbed circles into Bucky’s back as the ex-Soviet assassin shuddered in a ball on the floor.

He could feel the gazes of the Agents pointing guns at them, they were SHIELD if their uniforms were anything to go by and Steve knew he could take maybe ten by himself, with Natasha, Clint and Stark…maybe twenty, but there were more than that in the room, all of them armed and dangerous.

Bucky gave a choked sob and Steve felt his muscles tense. “Bucky, you’re safe,” he tried to soothe his friend, “Bucky, you’re going to be fine. It’s me, it’s Steve, Bucky…”

“Goddammit, let me through!” Someone shouted angrily and a tall man, a Lieutenant General going by the stars and badges on his Military dress uniform, shoved through the gathered Agents. He has dark hair streaked with silver and a hard, icy glare, his hat is tucked under his arm and Steve doesn’t miss the gun holstered at his hip.

“Stand the fuck down!” The Lieutenant General snapped, “put those goddamn guns away before I shove them up your sorry asses!”

The Agents fumbled to put the weapons away and the Lieutenant General’s eyes shifted in Steve’s direction, but they were on Bucky.

“Tash?” The Lieutenant General called, “gonna need some help here, Darlin’.”

The woman, _Tash_ , slipped through the crowd of Agents gracefully and stopped beside the Lieutenant General. She had long curly red hair streaked with grey pulled into a ponytail and was wearing a comfy looking top with jeans and tennis shoes, her eyes were a sharp green colour.

She looked at Bucky and sighed as she knelt beside him and said something softly in Russian.

Beside him, Natasha stiffened and Bucky started shaking harder.

Tash reached out carefully and touched Bucky’s shoulder.

Steve’s arms tightened around his friend slightly, prepared to hold Bucky back when he lashed out at the woman, but Bucky didn’t lash out, instead he threw himself at Tash and wrapped his arms around her and shook violently. Tash held him in her arms and stroked his back as she murmured more Russian to him soothingly.

“We aren’t going to hurt you,” the Lieutenant General said as he held his hand out to Steve. “You can trust my Wife and me. I promise.”

“Why?” Natasha growled suddenly as she stood, “you haven’t done anything except tell these rookies to stand down.”

The Lieutenant General cocked his head to the side, then slipped out of his uniform jacket, unbuttoned the cuff on his left arm and slid the sleeve up to his elbow.

Steve’s throat tightened and his eyes widened in shock.

The man’s arm was metal, the same as…as…

Steve looked at the Lieutenant General, _really_ looked, and realised he knew the shape of his jaw, the curve of his lip; the glint in his turquoise blue eyes. The Lieutenant General was Bucky, easily twenty-five years older than he was now.

There was a scuffle of shoes on tiles and the Agents parted as a smaller dark haired man in a suit jacket, white shirt, black tie, jeans and sneakers with a belt buckle in the shape of the SHIELD logo approached. His hair was longer with two bangs flicked out from his hairline, there were a pair of thick rimmed glasses perched on top of his head and he was a good four inches shorter, but Steve still knew the man.

“Tony Stark,” the man said as he looked at each of them, “Director of SHIELD.”


	4. 2013469

_Thank Odin for Yasha and Tash being here today_ , Tony thought as he spotted them over the gathered Agents. One of them noticed Tony as he approached and quickly stepped out of his way, which caused the others to move as well and he moved through the crowd easily.

They were Alts, he could already tell from the readings he’d gotten from the Gamma Sensors throughout the Triskellion, and he almost laughed at the blatant looks of shock on their faces.

“Tony Stark,” He greeted, “Director of SHIELD.”

He left out his husband’s hyphenated name easily and Clint’s double blinked and burst out laughing. “You’ve _got_ to be kidding!” The Alt cackled, “ _Stark_ as Director of SHIELD?”

Tony rolled his eyes, “I’ve been Director of SHIELD for twenty years, Katniss.”

Clint’s mouth shut with an audible click and Tony smirked. “We’ll put you in a Conference room while we wait for SHIELD’s Military Liaison to get here, alright?” He said and Steve’s double stood up and shuffled his feet. Tony grinned, _aren’t you just a sweetie?_ He said mentally as he took in the youthful face of his husband’s double and noted that they were different heights. His Steve was six two, this Alt would only be six foot. “Are we in the future, Sir? I mean…Bucky’s older and…well…”

“You’re in an Alternate Reality,” Tony told him gently, but loud enough for the rest of the Alts to here.

Clint’s Alt groaned, loudly, and thrust a roll of fifties into Tash’s Alt’s hand and Tash’s Alt smirked as she pocketed the roll.

Tony let them get to their feet before he snapped at the Agents to leave and grinned as he watched them scrambled to their work stations before he led the Alts to the Conference room in silence.

He noticed that his Alt looked older, even though they were the same age, and he didn’t miss the way the Other-Tony shrank away from the other Avengers like a scolded dog. He also noticed Steve’s adorable Alt was staring at Yasha, who he knew was fully aware of it and _strutting_ like he owned the place, and Yasha’s double was staring at Tash, who gave him soft smiles and softer words as they walked.

Tony didn’t see her move, she was fast as a snake and grabbed him around the neck and put a knife to his pulse.

“Where’s Steve _Alternate_ ,” she growled, “why isn’t he at SHIELD? Did Stark chase him off? Didn’t want to work at an Organisation that has a drunken playboy as their Director?”

Tony didn’t panic. “Steve should be here…”

He felt his ring pulse, a gift from Frigga after the Avengers helped save Asgard nearly fifteen years ago. It pulsed when its twin was near, and it allowed them to feel what the other was feeling.

“I was in a meeting with our dickhead of a President at the White House, if you must know,” Steve’s baritone voice split the still air, his Brooklyn accent peeking out ever so slightly. “Natasha, could you let my husband go? I kind of need him to keep the peace at home.”

Tash’s Alt released him almost immediately and Steve slid into place beside him and wrapped his arm around Tony’s waist, his hand possessively tight on Tony’s hip.

“General Steve Rogers, SHIELD Military Liaison,” he told the Alts with a smile.


	5. MCU Tony

Tony couldn’t stop staring at his double and Steve’s double, the Director and the General, who were quite obviously and happily _married_.

The General was taller and broader than Rogers with greyed blond hair and slight lines around his eyes. He was wearing a Military dress uniform like Barnes’ double, General’s Stars and all. Tony spotted a glint on his finger and saw a gleaming band on his ring finger, its match on the Director’s finger. He also noticed that the Director’s band was slightly thinner, hardly noticeable but it was thinner.

Tony looked away as the General glanced back but still caught his azure gaze and fought back a blush at the smirk the older man shot him.

He turned his head and spotted Rogers with a pinched look on his face as he glared at the arm the General had wrapped around the Director’s waist.

It was a moment later they reached the conference room and the Director and the General sat down almost immediately and linked hands on the table.

Clint gagged. “Dude, _gay_.”

“Watch it, Barton,” the General growled, eyes cold.

“Steve,” the Director murmured, squeezing the General’s hand gently, “he didn’t mean anything by it.”

The General sighed and his eyes softened slightly, but Tony didn’t miss the way he sat a little closer to the table, putting himself in front of the Director just slightly.

“A few years back, we were visited by another universe,” the Director told them, “their Earth was called Earth 616, they were…different, more similar to your universe but also similar to ours. The main similarity between their universe and ours was my husband being unfrozen in the mid to late eighties. You’ve only been out of the ice a few months haven’t you, Captain?”

Rogers gave a small nod, “earlier this year…we fought the Chitauri a week or so afterwards.”

“Jesus fucking Christ,” Barnes’ double breathed, “well…at least that’s better than having a couple of kids on the Helicarrier during that bullshit.”

The Director, the General, and Barnes’ wife, who couldn’t be anyone but Natasha, winced.

“After 616 came here, we started searching the Multi-Verse and seeing which Earths could pose threats and which Earths could be allies. Your Earth, from the data we have on file, is classified Earth-199999, one of the Earths we’ve listed as non-hostile.” The Director smiled, “our Earth is one of the better Earths, compared to Earths like 34881 and 612. You’re in no danger here unless you bring it on yourselves.”

“How do we get back?” Bruce asked quietly, and Tony knew they were all scared of the answer.

The Director shrugged, “we don’t know,” he told them honestly, “but we’ll do everything in our power to send you home. You have my word.”

“What were you doing when you were sent here?” The General asked, head cocked to the side slightly.

Natasha answered, “we were on the Helicarrier, arguing-”

“As usual,” Clint grumbled.

“-and a yellow light appeared and filled the room, next thing we know, we’re here.” Natasha concluded.

Tony sunk low in his seat, remembering the fight, and quietly said, “we’re disbanding…we don’t work…”

Rogers groaned off to the side, “you never wanted to join the Avengers anyway, Stark. Why do you even care? It’s your fault.”

Tony swallowed, avoiding their Alternates’ eyes. The Avengers were the only people he had left since Pepper left him for Happy, and ever since Barnes came back it had been all wrong between them, even worse than before. He had _nothing_ left.

“Back to the topic on hand,” Barnes’ double said and Tony thanked him silently for taking his soon to be ex-team mates’ eyes off of him, “your universe may be even more different to ours than it seems. Have you ever heard of Sires, Betas and Carriers?”

Tony wondered what they meant and briefly considered answering when Bruce said, “no, should we?”

“They’re a sub species,” the Director explained awkwardly, “Carriers…Carriers are people who can fall pregnant, male or female. Sires are people who can make Carriers pregnant, male or female, and Betas are both, but far less fertile…I’m a Carrier, and Steve is a Sire.”

Tony hardly blinked at the revelation, but felt he should have been more shocked, more…disgusted or whatever. Bruce nodded and out of the corner of his eye, Tony saw Clint give Natasha another roll of fifties and Rogers and Barnes stared at them dumbly.

“I’d like to study the biology,” Bruce said, “it would be…interesting to learn how a foetus is conceived here, and how it would survive in a testosterone rich environment.”

The Director grinned, “curious as ever, I see. You’ll have all the equipment and material you need at the lab in Avengers Mansion, which is where you’ll all be staying while you’re here…unless you’d rather stay at Avengers Tower or here at the Triskellion.”

“We have a choice?” Rogers sounded surprised.

“If you’re going to stay at the Triskellion, you’ll be kept in cells,” the General said, “you’d be less of a danger to yourselves if you’re kept in lock up.”

“At Avengers Tower you’d be dead within the month,” Barnes’ double smirked. “I wouldn’t even recommend it to Skull.”

“Avengers _Mansion_ ,” Tony repeated.

“Stark Manor,” the Director explained, “we needed a new Home Base about eighteen years ago after _Project: Insight_ destroyed the top floors of Avengers Tower. We all used to live there but now it’s just the First Avengers and a few others. The Avengers stay at Avengers Tower or around New York. We’ll be heading there now.”


	6. 2013469

Tony made sure the Alts were all asleep before he made his way down to Common Room and found Steve being pinned by Sarah and Gracie, Gracie on his chest, the new _Transformers_ TV show on the screen, Kelsie and Carter doing homework on the floor, and Peter sprawled on the big arm chair, asleep, still in his costume.

He wondered where the other kids were when Steve said, “Ian took the triplets to soccer practice, Kate has Dot and Jess at the Movies seeing that new Tinkerbell movie, Tim’s upstairs asleep for once, so Buck and Tasha are finally getting some sleep, and Torrun and Arya are in Asgard with Thor and Jane for some Warrior’s Ceremony. They said they’d be back before Christmas I think.”

Tony smiled and nodded, “have you told the Avengers yet?” He asked.

“James and Aaron aren’t here,” Steve shrugged slightly, so he didn’t wake Gracie, “we’ll tell them when they get back.”

Tony nodded, “alright.” He said and walked over to pick up his youngest daughter, cuddling the two-month-old close as she whined at being moved, and then settled again.

Steve grinned up at him, “wonder how the Alts are gonna react to the kids.”

“Badly,” Kelsie smirked from the floor. “If the way tall, blonde and grumpy talked to Stark was anything to go by. Also, he’s gonna _hate_ Jamie.”

“Ten bucks says James punches him,” Carter chirped.

“Twenty says James takes Rogers on one of his morning runs,” Peter grumbled sleepily.

Tony sighed fondly at his children and looked at Gracie, “maybe there’s hope for you somewhere, Sweetness,” he told her as she nuzzled his shoulder, drooling.

Kelsie, Carter, Peter and Sarah snorted or laughed and Tony sighed the same time Steve did.

“We can only hope,” Steve grinned and tugged him down gently so Tony could lie on his back with Gracie on his chest, Steve’s arm around his middle and his head on Tony’s shoulder.

“I love you,” Steve murmured into his ear.

Tony smiled softly, “I love you too.”


	7. MCU Steve

Steve was the first up the next morning and went downstairs, following the smell of eggs and bacon and found the General at the stove dressed in sweatpants and a black t-shirt, a young girl perched on the bench top.

She was…she was _stunningly_ beautiful, maybe eight years old with platinum blonde ringlets that fell down to her waist, her lips were naturally cherry red, her cheeks rosy, her skin was sun kissed, like his own, but her eyes were a bright, gold flecked brown and she wore an Iron Man pyjama top, Captain America bottoms, and Hulk socks.

She looked up and grinned when she saw him. “Hi, I’m Sarah Stark-Rogers,” she beamed and Steve nearly choked on his own tongue.

“Uh…uh…” he stammered.

“The words you’re looking for are ‘Hi, I’m Steve’,” Sarah supplied.

Steve felt his cheeks heat up and said, “Hi, I’m Steve.”

Sarah grinned and Steve looked at the General to find him smirking, “breakfast?” Was all the General said, and Steve nodded jerkily. “Yes…yes please.”

The General nodded and gestured to the bench chairs and Steve took a seat in one as Sarah began talking to the General at a mile a minute about something that happened yesterday at school, using wild hand gestures and words an eight-year-old shouldn’t know.

She looked like his mother, her namesake, same brightness about her, inner shine that Steve remembered so fondly, and Steve felt a deep ache after thinking his mother would _adore_ this little girl.

He was pulled from his thoughts as someone new entered the kitchen. Steve had to blink for a moment, thinking the person was Howard, but then realised the boy could only be thirteen, maybe a little older. He had dark hair and tan skin but cerulean eyes that were half open. He was dressed in a rumpled SHIELD sweatshirt and striped blue sleep pants.

He stumbled in, still half asleep most likely and stopped beside the General and whined wordlessly at him.

The General sighed and handed the boy a mug of coffee, “a boy your age should be getting a full night’s sleep.” He said.

“Here we go,” the boy groaned after finishing half the mug, “ _back in my day, we didn’t have these newfangled walkie talkies with blinking lights and_ …”

“Carter Buchanan,” the General frowned, “you’re not old enough yet for me to put you over my knee for being disrespectful.”

“ _Yeah_ ,” Sarah smirked and _Carter_ shot her a look, “quiet, you little twerp.”

“Ooh! So _scary_ ,” Sarah teased.

Carter opened his mouth to respond when the General gave him a warning glare. “There’s a bar of soap in the gym showers I’ll happily shove in your mouth for any foul language, Carter.”

Carter huffed and turned to see Steve.

“Oh, you’re the Alt, right?” He said, “I’m Carter. My parents think they’re funny.”

“If you were a girl you’d have been Claudia,” the General retorted, “and you were almost called Howard, so think yourself lucky, Carter.”

Sarah giggled and Carter glared.

“Uh…it’s nice to meet you,” Steve said.

“You bet your spangles it is,” Carter grinned and the General swatted him on the head.

Natasha and Clint shuffled in, joined at the hip as always, and stopped as they stared at Sarah and Carter.

“I know I look awesome,” Carter retorted, “but you’re starting to verge on creepy paedophile right now. I’m Carter.”

“Sarah,” Sarah gave a small wave.

The General smiled, “Carter, show them how to use the coffee machine and then go get ready for school. Sarah-Bear, go get ready before your Daddy gets cranky. He had a late night last night.”

“Okay, Poppa” Sarah slid from the bench with all the grace of a Ballerina and left the kitchen.

Carter had been half way through showing them all how to use the coffee machine, which was surprisingly simple, when the Director walked in wearing black sleep pants and a much too large SHIELD t-shirt.

“No, I’m not dragging five Alternates half way across New York so you can tell me what I already know and subject them to Johnny’s… _Johnny-ness_. Either you come here or you don’t get to talk to them. Okay, I’ll see you at the end of the month; James should be back by then.” He hung up the phone and opened his mouth to speak when it rang again and he answered in a language Steve didn’t recognise.

The General put scrambled eggs and bacon onto plates and handed them out before he walked over to the Director and leaned down for a kiss. “No overseas calls before the school run, Sweetheart,” he said.

The Director tugged him back down for another, longer kiss and they pressed their foreheads together. “Morning, Hon,” the Director smiled adoringly.

“Good morning to you too, Sweetheart,” the General replied with the same smile.

“Seriously, guys?” Steve blinked as Clint’s double strode in wearing a tank top and sleep pants, “we eat in here. I don’t need your gay in my food.”

“I can still kick you and your spawn out of here, Bart-” the Director was cut off as the General pulled him up for a searing kiss and the smaller man melted into it, arms wrapping around the General’s neck.

Clint’s double, Barton, made a face. “It’s a wonder we don’t all get cavities,” he said, and then stopped when he saw Steve, Natasha and Clint.

He then poked his head out the door and screamed, “ _BOYS_!”

Steve jumped as three boys _appeared_ in the middle of the kitchen. They were identical, with short blonde hair and sharp, ice blue eyes, just like Clint, and wearing matching Hawkeye pyjamas.

“ _What_?” They asked in unison.

“They’re Alts, Bird Brains,” the Director rolled his eyes. “The boys had nothing to do with it…this time.”

Barton continued to glare at the triplets for a moment. “Behave,” he told them sternly. “Or I’ll have Spangles put you through boot camp.”

“We _always_ behave,” they retorted.

Their doubles and Carter snorted or laughed.

“Go get ready for school; you little shits,” Barton said, “before I get your Mom up to Taser you three.”

“You too,” the Director said to Carter as the General wrapped his arms around the Director’s middle and rested his chin atop the Director’s head. “You’re babysitting for your brother tonight, remember?”

Carter sighed and left the kitchen as the boys disappeared.

“I’ll get Gracie,” the General said as he kissed the top of the Director’s head, “she’ll start fussing soon and I think our guests would love to meet her.”

The Director smiled and nodded and the General left just as Tony and Bruce walked in.

“Do you have any more children?” Bruce asked, “I just heard two of them yelling at each other from across the hall.”

“Steve and I have nine, eight biologically, we adopted Peter when he was three,” the Director grinned, “James is our eldest, then there’s Leonard and Mikaela, who are only two years apart, those three don’t live here anymore but they come around often, especially James. Kelsie and Blaine are twins, Blaine’s in Ohio at a boarding school called Dalton Academy. Kelsie lives here, you’ll meet her once she drags herself out of bed. Peter, too. You’ve already met Carter and Sarah, who was supposed to be our last one but then we had Gracie. We also have two grandchildren, Andy and Sophie.”

“Holy shit,” Clint and Tony blurted. Steve felt the same, but had always wanted a big family.

“Darce and I have five kids,” Barton told them, “Francis lives in Avengers Mansion, he and Leo are married, Kate should be down soon, and you’ve met the Hoodwink triplets, Hunter, Phillip and Fletcher. They’re Mutants and pains in my ass.”

“Darcy _Lewis_?” Clint exclaimed, “that crazy chick who Taser-ed Thor?”

“Watch it,” Barton warned, “that’s my wife.”

Bucky and Natasha’s doubles appeared soundlessly out of thin air and Bucky scampered into the kitchen and attached himself to Steve’s side, trembling.

“You’re okay,” Steve assured him as he held his friend tight and rubbed his back.

“I don’t remember being _that_ pathetic,” Bucky’s double, Yasha, said to the room and Natasha’s double, Tasha, swatted him.

“Go wake your children,” she snapped and he whined. “But _Tasha_ ,” he stuck out his bottom lip.

“That only works when I’m feeling generous,” Tasha replied, “go whine to your boyfriend.”

“ _Fine_ ,” Yasha slinked out and Tasha smiles at Bucky.

“It gets better;” she assured Steve, “just give him time, and a _lot_ of attention. What are we talking about?”

“Our kids,” the Director said.

“Oh, god,” Tasha teased, “you could go on about James for _hours_.”

“I kept it at a minimum, they’ll meet him soon enough.” The Director smirked.

“Yasha and I have six children, Aaron and Rebecca are our eldest, they live in Avengers Tower with the rest of them, Ian, Dorothy, Jessica and Tim live here, Tim’s four and a _terror_ of a child. He should be down soon with Yasha.”


	8. MCU Tony

Tony was quiet as the rest of the children filtered in and out of the kitchen getting ready for school.

The eldest was a Kelsie Stark, who looked a _lot_ like Maria but had Steve’s blue eyes, she strutted into the kitchen wearing what looked like a catholic school girl uniform straight out of a porno, and the Director gave her a cold look and told her to go change. She glared and went back upstairs and came back down in red skinny jeans, black leather boots, a grey shirt with an eagle artfully faded on the front and a mess of bangles and wrist bands with her hair tied back in a messy ponytail with a bright red ribbon.

“Better?” She sneered and the Director gave her a once over, “keep up the attitude and I’ll have you benched from the Young Avengers, Kelsie Anne.”

“You can’t do that,” she snapped.

“I’m your Carrier, and your commander is my subordinate. You’ll do what you’re told,” the Director returned and Kelsie groaned and stalked out of the kitchen, muttering in Italian.

Tony decided not to touch that with a ten foot pole.

Next was Kate Barton, fifteen, blonde, blue eyed and _gorgeous_ with attitude and snark, plenty to go around, and she flicked a grape at Natasha and Natasha didn’t kill her, so Tony decided she was cool.

“Oh, hell no,” Peter groaned, “There’s _two_ of them? God help us.”

The Director sighed at the fourteen year old, “you know, when we adopted you we thought you’d be the normal one in the family,” he said. “I’m still trying to figure out how you got the patented Stark-Rogers sass.”

“Osmosis,” Carter said from the side, “Uncle Bruce explained it to me.”

Peter smirked.

The kid had dark hair and eyes, not the same brown as Tony’s and his entire figure was leaner, but Tony thought he was cool.

Ian was a bastard; he scared the living shit out of Tony by _dropping from the goddamn air vents_.

Tony clutched his chest. “I have a heart condition!” He snapped.

“Been there, tried that,” the Director snorted as he pulled Sarah’s hair into a high ponytail, “Steve’s usually got a good comeback for it though.”

“Something along the lines of worrying not being a heart condition,” Peter said from the ceiling.

Ian’s green eyes sparkled dangerously as he pushed back his brown hair. Kid looked exactly like Barnes.

Tony decided he didn’t like the bastard.

Tony also nearly had a heart attack when he first saw Carter, thinking his Dad had come back from the dead, until Carter snapped his fingers and his hand was enveloped in flames.

“Dude, _cool_ ,” Clint gaped.

“Mutant!” Kate screeched comically and Carter launched a fireball at her and she dodged easily and the fireball extinguished before it hit the wall.

The Director slapped Carter upside the head with the file he was reading. “No powers in the house.”

“James gets to use his,” Carter pouted, “and the Hoodwinks.”

“James is _James_ ,” Barton snorted, “he’s killed people and your Dad will still look at him like he’s that shitty little two-year-old with those fucking puppy eyes.”

“You leave him alone, Barton,” the Director scowled, “he’s saved your life more times than you can probably count. Also, I _don’t_ have favourites.”

“Yes you do,” Tasha said as she read from her Stark Tab. “James is the favourite. Hell, he’s _my_ favourite.”

“Hey!” Ian protested.

Sarah was sharp and clever and stubborn and everything Tony wanted in a daughter, a daughter he originally thought he’d have with Pepper…but…

“Hey, Earth to Tony,” Sarah snapped her fingers in front of his eyes, “You’re thinkin’ ‘bout somethin’ techy, aren’tcha?”

“Hey, Brooklyn!” Kate called, “quit it with the accent, that’s Jimmy and Ronny’s gig!”

“Shut it, Katniss,” Sarah retorted, “I’m talkin’ ‘ere!”

“Dear god,” Barton groaned, “it’s like James all over again.”

“Oh no,” said Bruce’s double, Banner, who only had more silver in his hair than Bruce, “this is much worse.”

Dot and Jess were fraternal twins, Dot had dark hair and green eyes like Ian, but looked like Tasha, and Jess had red hair and blue eyes and looked like Yasha. Both girls were seven and absolutely adorable, not as adorable as Sarah, but he _liked_ Sarah.

“Hi!” Half the kids were already gone when the girls came in, off to school, Tony guessed.

Yasha knelt down and whispered in their ears, and the girls nodded and went over to Barnes, who had curled up in the chair at the very end of the bench and stared at the wall since after breakfast.

Dot had been the first one to speak. “Hug?” She asked, opening her arms wide.

Barnes went white as a ghost, “ah…”

“What are you doing?” Rogers asked Yasha, “he could hurt them…he doesn’t know his own strength with that arm.”

“He’s recovered enough,” Yasha assured him, “Aaron was around their age when I met him…Rebecca was a little younger than Tim.”

Barnes tentatively uncurled and Dot took that as a sign she could continue and clambered onto his lap, hugging him tight. Jess followed and sat on his other knee.

Barnes stiffened again, but slowly relaxed and carefully put his arms around the girls for a minute or two, before Tasha called, “Dotty! Jessie! You’re going to be late if you don’t hurry up!”

Barnes released the girls and they slid off his lap, waved, and scampered, giggling, out of the kitchen.

“ _Giggling_ ,” Sarah frowned as the Director braided her hair, “who in Hel is that happy?”

“Watch your language, Sarah Maria,” the Director scolded. “Done. Off you go.”

Sarah bounced up onto the bench and kissed the Director’s cheek, “see ya Daddy!” She chirped and scampered off.

If Ian was a bastard, Tim was a little shit. He fought the entire time Tasha and Yasha got him ready for school and even kicked and punched Yasha as he screamed “No” over and over again until Yasha grabbed him by the arm with his metal hand and said, “Timothy, you’re this close to getting my belt on your backside. Do you want that?”

That sent alarm bells ringing in Tony’s mind and he went to say something but the Director grabbed his arm and shook his head, “Steve’s hit our kids before,” he said softly, “in certain circumstances. This is a circumstance.”

“No, Papa.” Tim sniffled and went quiet the rest of the time Tasha and Yasha got him ready, crying silently.

“Come here, Kiddo,” Yasha sighed as he opened his arms for Tim to hug him, which Tim did. “You know Mama and I can’t keep you home,” he said into Tim’s red hair, “you need to go to school, so you can be smart like your brothers.”

“Uncle Jamie calls Arry stupid,” Tim mumbled.

“Uncle Jamie and Aaron are best friends. And _everyone_ is stupid compared to Uncle Jamie and Uncle Lenny…except your Uncle Tony…and your Mama.” Yasha chuckled as Tasha narrowed her eyes at him. “Tell you what, if you’re good at school today and do _all_ your work, I’ll take you for ice cream this afternoon, okay?”

“Okay Papa,” Tim sniffled and wiped his face as Tasha led him out of the kitchen.

“Mikaela is, technically, smarter that James,” the Director pointed out.

“That punk ass little shit makes me feel like I’m in elementary school again,” Yasha retorted, “my god daughter at least talks normally around us lesser beings.” He snagged his keys off the bench and left the kitchen, “Tasha and I have SHIELD covered! You enjoy your day with the Alts!”

After he left, the General re-entered the kitchen carrying a squirming baby dressed in pink.

“She’s all yours,” he grimaced as he handed her to the Director, who sighed and took the baby.

Tony gaped along with the rest of his team mates.

The infant had black hair, soft and thick and curled up a bit at the front, creamy skin and was _tiny_. Smaller than anything living Tony had ever seen.

The Director tucked her into his arms and glared at the General, who shrugged, “you’re better with her than I am,” he said.

“I know,” the Director retorted softly, “can you _at least_ make a bottle?”

“That I can do,” the General smirked and went to make up a bottle for the infant.

Bruce was the first to speak.

“Is this Gracie?” He asked.

The Director nodded, grinning. “Two months on Sunday,” he murmured as Gracie whined and wiggled in his arms, then settled again as she curled up against the Reactor.

“Always thought kids would hate that,” Rogers commented as nonchalantly as he could, but still peered around to get a closer look at the baby.

“The first sound a foetus hears is the Carrier’s heartbeat,” the General said as he handed the bottle to the Director, who took it and coaxed Gracie to take it, “apart from James, and Peter of course, the first sound they heard was the Reactor.”

“Wait, _what_?” Tony blinked, “how long have you been Iron Man?”

“Haven’t been Iron Man for five years,” the Director snorted, “Retired from the super hero business…I’ve had the Reactor for over twenty years.”

“Holy Shi…” Clint stopped himself, “shivers. Shivers is good.”

The General gave him a look, “I doubt Afghanistan is a good topic to be talking about around a baby,” he said as his arm curled around the Director’s waist.

Tony decided not to press the subject…yet.

And he still couldn’t stop looking at Gracie. Dammit, he didn’t even _like_ kids.

“Wanna hold her?” The Director asked suddenly and Tony jumped.

“Uh…uh…no,” He answered instantly, knowing he’d hurt something so _small_.

“She’s not as delicate as she looks,” the General assured him, as if reading his mind, “and it’s not that hard. She’s just fussy when she’s hungry.”

Gracie released the bottle and blinked at Tony with big, blue eyes.

Clint slapped him on the back, “scared of a _baby_ , Stark?” He teased, but Tony heard the underlying disdain.

“Fine, dammit, I’ll hold her,” Tony scowled and the Director told him how to hold her before slipping her into his arms.

She was a hot, solid weight against his chest and in his arms, and she appeared to settle easily, contently, but Tony didn’t relax at all, his heart hammering s loud he was sure everyone could hear it.

“She’s a baby,” the General told him gently, “not a bomb. Just relax or she’s gonna know you’re nervous.”

“Shut up,” Tony hissed, “please…just take her? Please?”

The Director nodded and plucked Gracie out of Tony’s arms, “you did pretty well, better than most people,” he said.

“You’re scared of a _baby_ , Stark?” Rogers rolled his eyes, “good thing you and Ms Potts never had any kids.”

“I’m scared of _hurting her_!” Tony snapped loudly and flinched when Gracie whined and started crying. “See? I’m not cut out for kids! Never will be!”

He left as quickly as he could without running and unconsciously made his way up to his old bedroom at the Mansion. It hadn’t changed and he dropped to the floor by the bed and pulled his knees up to his chest, arms around his shins as he stared at the Captain America poster on the wall.

He’d screwed up big time at every point in his life, Pepper leaving and the Avengers disbanding were just the tip of the iceberg compared to the shit he has done, and like every other mistake he’s made, Pepper leaving and the Avengers disbanding were his fault. If he’d just _followed_ orders and maybe made them more upgrades to their equipment or…

There was a knock on the door and he looked up to see the General standing there, leaning against the door frame, “hey,” the General smiled.

“How’d you know where to find me?” Tony asked, “got cameras or something all over the mansion?”

“Yes,” the General shrugged, “but I’ve been married to you for twenty-four years, I know you better than I know Yasha.”

Tony rolled his eyes.

The General stepped in and sat down beside Tony on the floor with a groan. “What I wouldn’t give to have the experiences I have now in the body I had twenty-six years ago.” He smiled as he rubbed his knee.

“You’d be less of a dick than Rogers,” Tony mumbled and the General wrapped a heavy, warm arm around Tony’s shoulders.

“I was an _asshole_ at twenty-six,” he chuckled, “Everyone I knew was either dead or old, SHIELD was sending me on suicide missions every other week and I lived every day like I’d die the next. It’s a wonder I only have _one_ child I didn’t have with my husband, and even then Tony treats Johnny like he’s family…Steve has to find his footing, find someone who makes him happier than he thinks he deserves, and if he doesn’t I’m quite positive Natasha will rip his balls off.”

“It’s my fault,” Tony whispered, “It’s my fault the Avengers are disbanding, if I’d only _followed_ orders…”

The General snorted and laughed, “My husband has and never will follow orders, much less _mine_ , and he was a far better Avenger for it. Tony…you’re up there, you’re in the air and you _see_ things that Steve can’t. How is he supposed to know that there’s a dozen Doom Bots about to attack a school bus full of kids and you know you can get to them in time? Who cares about keeping the Bots contained, it’s not going to be worth anything if those kids die on your watch.”

Tony sniffled and wiped his face, fighting back the tears he _refused_ to shed.

“Hey,” the General tugged him a little closer and he went willingly, letting himself enjoy the older man’s warmth, “you and my husband are gonna have a ball down in the lab, I’ll keep your team occupied.”


	9. MCU Steve

Steve normally didn’t like being lazy, but there wasn’t another choice really. They’d all spent their days watching TV or playing on the mansion’s various gaming consoles.

Steve’s favourite was Super-Hero Smack Down.

But they also spent time with their doubles and the kids when they were home. Steve liked talking to the Director, it was so easy and he just felt _welcoming_ , he ran SHIELD differently to Nick Fury.

“SHIELD is a sanctuary for Super and Non-Humans,” the Director explained one night over dinner, “but is separate from the Avengers and the Young Avengers. When the old SHIELD fell, the Avengers suffered greatly, we lost a lot of our equipment and had to start from scratch, now if SHIELD is compromised, the Avengers will still be able to respond quickly and effectively. But we also have our own Super-Human response team called the Ultimates and we have members of the Avengers as Agents.”

Steve liked all the kids to varying degrees, but Kelsie would have to be Steve’s least favourite. She was loud and obnoxious and once or twice Steve thought he could smell alcohol on her breath.

Yasha…god, he was just like Bucky was before he fell off the train, maybe a little more mature and grounded, but there wasn’t much of a difference. He even called Steve ‘Stevie’ more than a few times and a punk. He could tell his Bucky was beginning to come out of the shell of the Winter Soldier when Yasha and Tash were around.

Peter, the boy the Director and the General adopted, was a great kid. Steve had been surprised to learn Peter was also a superhero named Spider-Man.

“I couldn’t ask for better parents,” Peter had told him one afternoon after he asked how the Director and the General treated him, “they treat me exactly like they treat my brothers and sisters…well, Dad’s always been a bit more lenient with James, but no one has ever treated me like anything but family from day one… _Clint you bird-brained beak-face_!”

 Tony cracked up from behind him as Peter chased after Clint, who was cackling as he sprayed the room with webs.

 

They’d been in this universe maybe a week-and-a-half when they walked into the kitchen one morning to find two men there, one blonde and one brunet.

The blonde was tall, maybe taller than Thor, with sun-kissed skin and cherry lips, he was wearing a similar uniform to the one Steve wore during the Invasion on the blue was slightly darker, there was a shield harness over his shoulders, and the cowl had been replaced with a helmet.

The brunet was wearing a sleeveless black vest, black trousers, black combat boots and a huge rifle was slung over his shoulder. His skin was pale and there was a week or two’s worth of stubble on his face, eyes smudged with black war paint, and his hair was long and shaggy, but what stood out the most was his right arm, which was metal, exactly like Bucky’s.

“Morning,” the blonde said as he sipped his coffee, not looking up from his Stark-Tab.

The brunet grunted from where he was slumped at the bench and the blonde set another mug in front of him. “Sit the fuck up, moron. We have guest.”

Natasha spoke first. “Who the hell are you?” She said tightly.

The blonde smirked at her, dark eyes glittering, and he said, “James Rogers.”

“Aaron Barnes,” the brunet grumbled.

Steve opened his mouth to reply when he was nearly knocked over as the Director came in and immediately went over to James. “Hey Baby,” he grinned as he pulled James into a hug, and the blonde returned it.

“You two weren’t supposed to be back for another three days,” the Director said as he released James.

“Got bored,” Aaron said, “jumped the gun. We only got _slightly_ blown up this time.”

The Director frowned, “I told you to be careful, James.” He scolded.

James shrugged and grinned arrogantly. “Wanted to come home faster,” he replied and the Director sighed at him with fond annoyance.

The older man reached up and gripped James’ jaw as he turned the man’s head to the side and scowled when a still bleeding gash was revealed just behind James’ ear. It looked painful, Steve thought. It was strange seeing _Tony_ _Stark_ acting like a concerned parent, too.

“This will need stitches,” the Director sighed, “what the hell did this, anyway?”

“Ninjas,” Aaron groaned, “damn HYDRA hired _ninjas_.”

“More like assassins,” James shrugged, “nothing we couldn’t handle.”

“I still kicked more Ninja ass than you did, Stark,” Aaron said.

“Uh-huh,” James rolled his eyes, “whatever helps my sidekick sleep at night.”

“Not your sidekick,” Aaron sat up and picked up the mug, “not my division.”

“Go get that stitched up,” the Director interrupted the pair, “and Aaron, if I see your greasy trash robo-hobo hair on my kitchen bench again I’ll put you on rookie training duty for the next month.”

Aaron responded by smacking his head back onto the bench and then groaned. “That hurt,” he whined.

“Good,” James said, “come on, I know you’ve got a thing for that nurse down in medical.”

“No, she’s got a thing for super soldiers, I’ve got a thing for hot blondes who a good with guns.”

“Aw, you have a thing for me?”

“I’m Russian. The Stars and Stripes are a complete turn off.”

The pair left the kitchen still bickering and the Director grinned after them. “They’re second generation Avengers,” he told them after a moment, “and those two are some of the best Agents SHIELD has. They’re also some of the best in the superhero business and completely reckless and arrogant when it comes to doing their jobs.”

“ _Baby_?” Tony exclaimed, “He’s an adult!”

“He’s my first born,” the Director grinned, “he’ll always be my Baby.”

“You’re a huge Sap, Director,” Clint snickered, “that’s, like, the gayest cliché I’ve ever heard!”

The knife flung past Clint’s ear, over the Director’s shoulder and buried a good four inches into the wall. It was a heavy-bladed combat knife with a black handle and looked deadly. Clint screamed in shock and the Director cackled.

“James is also very protective of me,” he smirked, “you should all be careful about what you say when he’s here.”

They all started helping with breakfast or made coffee as the kids filtered in and out, heading to school, and the General walked in with his hair a mess, yawning, and blinked at the knife still buried in the wall. “Cricket’s home,” he said before wrapping his arms around the Director’s waist and burying his face in the smaller man’s hair.

Steve noticed Clint fight back a laugh at ‘Cricket’ and wondered if he’ll still use pet names for his kids when they’re in their twenties.

“Hey, Pops,” James said brightly as he swaggered in cockily and leaned his hip against the counter top, he was wearing low hanging dark blue jeans and a white t-shirt under a hoodie with _STARK INDUSTRIES_ sprawled across the back in white.

“You’re back early,” the General replied, “what have I told you about rushing missions?”

“You told me plenty, Pops,” James smirked, “I just didn’t listen. I’m good, not perfect.”

His eyes, the same gold-flecked curious brown as Tony’s, flicked to Steve. “What’s your rank?” He asked with a quirk of his eyebrow.

“Captain, Capt. Rogers,” Steve answered.

The Director snorted against the General’s throat and the General sighed and rolled his eyes as James’ smirk grew wicked and he said, “I’m the youngest Colonel in the United States Army, _son_.”

Beside him, Tony barked out a laugh and Steve felt his jaw unhinge in shock as Clint, Natasha and even Bucky sniggered at him.

“ _JAMIE_!” Sarah squealed as she ran in and launched herself at James, her arms wrapping around his waist. She released him a moment later and saluted comically. “Colonel Spangles,” she said seriously and James grinned at her and the pair performed a short but elaborate handshake.

“Are you gonna stay a while, Jamie?” Sarah pleaded, “Please? I’ve got the new Wonder Woman game and you _promised_ you’d play it with me!”

James frowned, “sorry, Sarah-Bear. The Director’s got me doing _so much_ paperwork and I can’t _possibly_ stay and play videogames,” he said sadly.

Sara whirled around to the Director, “please can Jamie stay, Daddy? The paperwork can’t be _that_ important, can it? I never see Jamie anymore!”

The Director scowled at James, “your brother is a big liar, Sarah,” he said.

“I’m Captain America,” James responded cheekily as he cocked his head to the side and grinned, “I’m _always_ honest.”

Steve could see the similarities between the Director and James when he looked closely, they had the same jaw angle, their eyes were the same shape and colour, they both had slender fingers and James’ smile was all their Tony, arrogant and sharp and fake. He wondered what James was hiding when Peter snuck into the kitchen soundlessly and Steve wouldn’t have seen him enter if he hadn’t been looking directly at the boy when he entered. Peter crept silently towards James, probably attempting to scare the blonde, when James’ hand shot out and gripped Peter’s wrist.

“Aw, come on Jamie!” Peter whined, “I wasn’t even _breathing_ this time!”

“Your utter geekiness radiates off you in _waves_ , Buttercup,” James responded, “It’s giving me hives.”

“Don’t call me Buttercup,” Peter scowled.

“Okay, Bug-Boy,” James smirked.

“ _Arachnid_!” Peter exclaimed, “I thought you were supposed to be smart?”

“I majored in robotics,” James said, “not Biology.”

 _“Sir, General Rogers,”_ JARVIS said suddenly, _“there is an emergency aboard the Helicarrier. The Giant Sugary Animals have escaped and are running amok.”_

Steve blinked and the Director and General groaned and the General looked at James.

“Nope,” James shook his head, “Medical’s put me on leave until my head wound heals. Also, I rounded the Gummi Bears up last time and was scrubbing syrup from my uniform for weeks.”

The Director’s eyes suddenly turned completely black and Steve, and his teammates, jumped at the sudden oily blackness of his eyes, and then they returned to normal and he grabbed the General by the shirt and dragged him out of the kitchen.


	10. 2013469

Tony smiled as he watched Steve pull on his dress uniform. He was already dressed and was sitting on the bed. Steve smiled when their eyes met and he asked, “what’re you so happy about?”

“Just…happy,” Tony replied, “even though someone let Giant Gummi Bears loose on my Helicarrier. Also, I’m looking forward to dinner tonight.”

Steve grinned that grin that will always make Tony’s knees go weak and leaned down to kiss Tony. “I am too, Sweetheart.”

“Hon,” Tony responded as he straightened Steve’s tie, “come on, we’ve got to go round up the Gummi Bears before they get into the rotors. Again.”


	11. MCU Tony

Tony has a hunch.

They were sitting in the Common Room watching Peter kick Steve, Aaron and Clint’s backsides at Mario Kart, Natasha was sprawled out like a cat on the opposite couch, Bucky tucked into the big, cushy arm chair off to the side, Bruce was beside Tony, and James was on Tony’s other side and the blonde had Sarah stretched out across his lap like a queen, and Tony was doing the math in his head, but he needed a proper timeline.

“What year were you born?” He asked James quietly.

James didn’t even look at him as he responded, “April twenty-third, 1988.”

Tony did the math quickly and shock ripped through him and his eyes widened. “ _You’ve got to be fucking kidding!_ ”

“Ladies and gentlemen, I think he’s got it,” Aaron smirked.

If he and the Director were the same age and James was twenty-six years old, that the Director would have been a few months off from his eighteenth birthday when he got pregnant with the blonde.

“What’s your problem?” Natasha asked.

“The Director would have been _seventeen_ when the General knocked him up!” Tony exploded.

“God, don’t remind me,” James rolled his eyes.

Clint cackled, “The General’s a cradle robber. I didn’t know you liked ‘em young, Cap… _goddammit_!”

Peter laughed as he blue-shelled Clint.

He came first in the race and Steve, Aaron and Clint were replaced with Natasha, Ian and Sarah.

“So…how’d they get together?” Tony asked, “I mean, how’d they meet and have…”

“Sex?” Sarah asked. “That’s a story Daddy and Poppa have to tell you. They’re funny when they talk about it.”

Aaron and James stared at her, “since when do you know what sex is?” James blinked.

“Phil, Fletch and Hunt told me,” Sarah said as she blue shelled Peter, who whined. “They said they walked in on Uncle Frankie and Leo doing it once.”

“Frankie and Leo?” Steve asked.

“Francis Barton,” Kate called as she and Carter dropped out of the air vents, “he’s my twat of a big brother. He married Leonard ‘Leo’ Stark two years ago.”

“Second generation Hawkeye and Iron Man,” Carter grinned, “see, Frankie used to be Long Shot, which is what Katie goes by now, and Lenny used to be Iron Lad…”

Clint snorted.

“And Lenny’s a Beta, like me,” Aaron continued, “Frankie’s a Sire, and they’ve got a couple of kids, Andy and Sophie, twins.”

“How long…” Steve said, “How long have you been Captain America?”

James looked at Aaron for a moment, “about eight years?” He asked.

“Eight years in July,” Aaron nodded, “but you’ve only been an Avenger for three.”

“Went to war,” James shrugged.

“That’s where I got this,” Aaron held up his metal arm.

“Uh…” Steve blushed, “are you like…like the Director?”

“Good looking? A genius?” James asked cheekily.

“Short tempered,” Aaron snorted and James elbowed him in the ribs.

“No…uh…are you a…a…Carrier?”

Aaron was the first one to lose it and the last to calm down. All of this universe’s residents cracked up at Steve’s question and Steve flushed red.

After everyone calmed down James said, “I’m a Sire, like the General. Most Carriers have distinguishing features, like larger eyes, fuller lips and a brighter shine in their hair. If you look closely at Dad when he gets back you’ll see it.”

Tony realised James was right, not only was the Director a good four inches shorter than him, he had an altogether more pixie-like appearance, there were streaks of bronze in his hair between the grey as well.

 

Nearly an hour ago Sarah had sat herself on Tony’s lap and refused to get off, well, she never refused, she just wouldn’t move.

Sebastian was about to start belting out _Kiss The Girl_ on screen when the Director and General stumbled, looking ruffled, and dropped onto the couch.

The General dropped first, long legs stretched out to the end of the comfortable chair, one arm above his head and the other at his side, and then the Director plopped down beside him, back to chest, and the General curled the arm at his side around the smaller man, who snuggled closer, eyes closed.

It was so sweet and comfortable that it made Tony ache for a relationship like that.

“Date night?” James asked from where he was sprawled on his stomach on the floor with Aaron. Both men were doing excellent impressions of lounging cats.

“It is,” the Director grumbled, “Jamie, Baby. I love you, but shut up.”

“Seconded,” the General mumbled as he buried his face in the Director’s hair and inhaled.

“God, Uncle Steve,” Aaron whined, “Could you do your kinky smelling fetish somewhere I don’t have to witness it?”

The General didn’t respond; he only pulled the Director, who was smirking tiredly, closer and inhaled deeply as he hummed happily.

Aaron groaned, and then yelped as James kicked him in the hip. “Shut up,” the blonde said.

There was content, comfortable silence as Sebastian attempted to get the Prince to kiss Ariel and Tony felt Sarah’s head droop onto his shoulder as her eyelids grew heavy.

Suddenly, the Director wiggled out of the General’s octopus hold and said, “we’re gonna be late if we don’t start getting ready, Hon.”

The General whined, “Leave me alone. I’m old.”

“Uh-huh,” the Director sighed, “you’ll be staying on that couch if you don’t hurry.”

“I’m up,” the General nearly fell off the couch trying to get up quickly and the Director snorted.

“Shut up,” the General huffed as he stood. “Sugar makes my back ache, you know that, brat.”

“I’ve heard you whine about it for fifteen years, Hon,” the Director retorted as they left the common room.

“Earplugs tonight,” James grumbled.

“Why do you need earplugs?” Bruce asked.

“Enhanced hearing,” James replied, “I can hear _everything_ that’s going on in this house, and I’ve lived with them for twenty-six years, I know the difference between bickering and flirting. Pops is flirting; Dad’s playing him like a fiddle.”

“Ew,” Carter flinched.

“Be thankful your eyes have been spared from your parents having sex,” Aaron declared, “I’ve walked in on my parents. _Recently_ , you little shit.”

James snickered and Aaron swatted him with his metal arm. “Ass.”

“Better than yours,” James responded instantly and Aaron snorted.

Tony tried to remember if his parents ever went out for dinner for the sake of going to dinner and couldn’t. His parents had barely tolerated each other and only acted like the perfect little family when they were in front of cameras or potential investors.

The Director walked in about ten minutes later in a navy suit with a crimson tie, ruby quartz sunglasses over his eyes, “has anyone seen my coat and scarf?” He asked.

“Hall closet, ground floor,” Carter, Kelsie and Peter said without looking at him, “beside Aunt Tasha’s mink.”

“I love having children with eidetic memories,” the Director laughed.

“We don’t like having eidetic memories!” Carter shouted as he left and the Director laughed.

The General walked in wearing a tan coat, blue sweater, ivory slacks and a blue scarf.

“Could you dress anymore old?” Peter blurted and James and Aaron snickered on the floor.

“Watch it, Peter,” the General warned, “I can still put you over my knee.”

“Bullshit,” James said. “Buttercup’s on my side, Pops.”

“Be careful, Colonel,” the General warned, “or I’ll have you court martialled.”

“I’m the Army’s golden boy, _Sir_ ,” the word was spat, “not even _you_ could turn them on me.”

“Do you want to see me try?” The tension was so thick you could cut it with a knife.

“ _Knock it off both of you_!” The Director barked in a cold voice, “You’re acting like children asserting over a ball in the park! Jesus, you’re supposed to be _adults_!”

James growled, low and menacing and the General glared back.

The Director slotted himself in front of the General, “James, _stop_.” He said firmly, “this is the reason you moved out. Stop asserting and _calm down_.”

James deflated slightly and Bruce leaned over to whisper in Tony’s ear, “here, Sires can assert. While we couldn’t hear it, they give off a sort of rumble or whine that other Sires and Carriers can hear. The Director is the Carrier-Dominant, or Carrier-Dom, of the Avengers. Kind of like an Alpha in a pack of wolves, and the General is the Sire-Dom, but only because he’s married to the Director.”

Tony nodded, “and what does that have to do with James?” He asked as the General and the Director left the Mansion.

“James and the General don’t get along by the looks of it, and James was just trying to assert himself as Sire-Dom of the Avengers, in ancient times he and the General would have battled and the loser would have to back off, but they could only fight if the Director allowed it. It’s probably something we really shouldn’t get into.”

“Huh,” Tony said.


	12. 2013469

Tony grinned contently as he pressed himself against his husband’s side, the world painted orange in the waning sunset in Central Park.

He has his arm looped through Steve’s and his head on his husband’s shoulder, their walk was slow and they were in no hurry to go home just yet.

The other pair rounded the corner of the path silently, awkwardly, their hands linked uncomfortably as they put as much distance between them as the path allowed. Their eyes were down casted, but they both looked up when they saw Tony and Steve.

Tony felt the hurt filter through their rings and then the determination Tony had always loved, even before Frigga enchanted their rings.

Steve’s hand slid out of his pocket and Tony dropped his hand into Steve’s and Steve linked their fingers together intimately, their rings on show, glowing brightly, as he lifted their hands to kiss Tony’s ring.

Tony’s spine tingled and he smiled at Steve as the two boys, maybe a little older than Peter, slid a little closer to each other and gripped hands more firmly as they walked off. Tony didn’t miss the blush on their cheeks.

Tony looped his arm through Steve’s again and smiled, “I like helping people realise this is okay,” he said and Steve hummed in agreement, “I do too, Sweetheart.”

“The Alts are…difficult though,” Tony continued as he traced invisible hearts into Steve’s bicep with his finger, “our doubles _hate_ each other, hell, they all hate my double except for Bruce. The Avengers don’t work without Captain America and Iron Man, you remember when I broke my leg and Doom attacked, it wasn’t your best battle plan.”

“Thank god Leo was there,” Steve nodded with a frown as he remembered the battle, Tony got flashes over their bond and pressed a kiss to Steve’s bicep, “hey, back to the present Hon.”

Steve smiled at him and kissed his hair. “Anthony thinks it’s his fault the Avengers are disbanding,” he said and Tony quirked an eyebrow at Anthony. “I didn’t want to call him Stark,” Steve explained with a shrug.

“Does that make your double _Steven_?” Tony teased.

“I think he’d punch you if you called him that,” Steve replied and Tony laughed.

“James would beat him up, he’s already thrown a knife at Clint’s double for calling me a sap,” he smiled. “So, why does Anthony think it’s his fault?”

“He doesn’t follow orders,” Steve chuckled.

Tony nearly tripped over as he laughed. “I’ve _never_ followed orders, not without arguing first, anyway. It’s one of the _many_ things you love about me, Hon.”

Steve laughed, “I do love you, Sweetheart,” he said with a smirk, “but your disobedience isn’t one of the things I love about you. In fact, there are very few things I love about you, your money being one of them.”

Tony swatted Steve’s chest and they both laughed. Steve tilted Tony’s chin up so they were face to face and leaned down to give Tony a chaste kiss. Tony’s hand curled into the hair on the nape of his husband’s neck as they parted a few seconds later. “I love you,” Steve murmured quietly with a smile.

Tony bumped their noses together, “I love you too.”

“I think Anthony’s attracted to me,” Steve said after an endless moment of just looking into each other’s eyes and Tony chuckled.

“It seems I have good taste in men in every universe, Hon,” he grinned, then blinked as his grin turned wicked, “goddamn, are you _serious_?”

“Deadly,” Steve nodded as he pecked Tony on the lips a few times, “we should get Bucky and Tasha in on it, too.”

“Cheesus,” Tony groaned, “well, it’s one way to get the team to work together.”

“Worked for us,” Steve pointed out. “ _Very_ well, in fact.”

“This is either genius or incredibly, unbelievably stupid,” Tony said. “Are we really going to try and get our Alts to get together?”

“Yep,” Steve smiled.

Tony kissed him, hard and passionate and felt Steve grin against his lips.

Cocky bastard knew he was getting laid tonight.


	13. MCU Tony

Bruce had gone snooping and found an old shoe box full of photos in a closet. They were all seated at the dining room table as he rummaged through the box. Tony could feel Steve’s heat as the soldier leaned over him after Bruce pulled the first picture from the box.

It was the Director and the General, the General was the same age as Steve in the photo and was dressed in khakis and a plaid shirt with his hair gelled as he slumped on a couch in what looked like the Malibu house. Beside him with his legs draped over the General’s lap was a seventeen-year-old Director, wearing a Rolling Stones t-shirt, ripped jeans and thick rimmed dorky glasses. His hair was much longer but those two locks of hair still flicked out from his hairline. They weren’t looking at the camera, and they didn’t even look like a couple, just close friends.

“They look like buddies, not fuck buddies,” Clint said.

“The date on the back is June eighth, 1987,” Bruce explained.

“About four months before my eighteenth birthday,” Tony murmured. “I thought they’d have been together before the Director was knocked up.”

Bruce put the photo down and pulled out another.

It was the Director, this time in a suit and tie, beaming beside Obadiah Stane, who was also smiling, but the smile was cold, hiding an anger that Tony had seen when he got back from Afghanistan.

“’Just told Obie about the Baby’,” Bruce read from the back of the photo. “Shit.”

Tony shuddered at the thought of Stane meeting his child. “He always told me children were a distraction,” he said softly, “told me…told me Dad didn’t have me until he was in his late sixties was because I’d have been a distraction from the company.”

“When he was really making sure he had no challengers for his place as CEO,” Steve said, and Tony thought he could hear _anger_ in Steve’s tone.

The next photo is the Director and General again, the Director has his thin legs locked around the General’s waist, one lanky arm wrapped around the General’s neck while the other dangled over the General’s shoulder. The General has one hand under the Director’s thigh and the other cupping his face as they kissed. The General was in the uniform and was covered in dust.

“It’s dated about a month after your birthday,” Bruce told Tony, “six months until Baby!’ is written on the back.”

“It’s kinda sweet,” Bucky mumbled and they all turned to stare at him, but he sunk closer to Steve and they looked away to ease the still recovering assassin’s discomfort.

Bruce pulled another out.

The Director had a bit of a bump in the this one, maybe four or five months along, he’s lying on a messed up bed on his back, arms folded under his head. The General is sprawled out beside him, his head on the Director’s chest, facing the swell, one hand curled in the Director’s messy hair and the other dancing over the swell, his mouth open like he was talking.

“’The Cheese is talking to Baby. What have I done?’” Bruce smiled as he read the back of the photo and Clint grinned and nudged Steve with his foot, “that’d be something you’d do, huh Cap?”

Steve nodded, “it’s…I think it’s intimate,” he said, “it’s…it feels like the Father…uh… _Sire_ is contributing to the baby.”

The next photo had the pair in a gorgeous blue and red nursery, most of the room was royal blue, but the skirting boards, door and window frames, doors and a foot wide stripe across the walls were brilliant crimson and the stripe had gold stars every few inches, about the size of a hand.

There was a steel framed crib by the window, it was lined with teddy bears wearing military uniforms, beside the crib was a four foot stuffed golden lion plush with a black mane and blue glass eyes and sitting on an old fashioned, but beautiful rocking chair was a yellow teddy bear dressed as Captain America. The General was splattered with blue and red paint and glaring at a laughing Director, who doesn’t have a drop on him.

“’Finally finished the nursery! And Baby started kicking!’ Is written on the back,” Bruce smiled, “they seem…happy.”

They all hummed in agreement.

The next photo wasn’t happy. The Director was maybe seven months along, he looked tired and angry and he was yelling at the General with tears rolling down his face. The General was in his uniform and with a scolded dog look on his face. There was rips and scorch marks in his uniform, like he’d almost been blown up.

“’The idiot Sire of my child nearly got himself killed. He’d better start getting to know the couch.’” Bruce read, “’He spent a month on the couch’ is written in brackets as well.”

“Reasonable,” Tony frowned and Natasha nodded.

Steve blushed.

The next photo had the Director in a hospital bed, he looked exhausted, pale and sweaty with his hair plastered to his scalp, he looked like hell, actually, but he was grinning broadly at the camera. Beside him was the General, wearing a dusty and slightly bloodied uniform, hair askew. The General had his arms around the Director’s shoulders and chest, his legs stretched out on the hospital bed and crossed at the ankles, he was grinning at the camera as well.

Cradled in the Director’s arms was a tiny blue bundle.

“Right after giving birth,” Bruce murmured with a smile, “must have been painful. Someone James’ size would have been slightly larger than normal as an infant, and the Director isn’t a very tall man…”

He set the photo down and pulled out another, it was a polaroid of a sleeping baby in a hospital crib, blonde, pink, cherry lipped and _tiny_. Written along the bottom of the photo is:

  _James Christopher Rogers_  
Four pounds ten ounces  
Thirty-two centimetres  
Born April 23 rd, 1988, Brooklyn Memorial, New York at 2:51 AM

“A five pound baby does _not_ grow into a two hundred and twenty pound six foot five super soldier,” Clint frowned and Tony nodded.

“The math doesn’t add up,” he said, “it’s…the kid must have had one hell of a growth spurt. I mean…”

“You know that those are private,” the Director said suddenly as he and the General stepped into the dining room and they all jumped a little.

“We’re not mad,” the General said quickly, “you could _ask_ though.”

“Uh…sorry,” Steve said as he ducked his head. “We were…we were curious, is all.”

“No harm done,” the Director shrugged, “if you get time while you’re here I can have JARVIS play some of the old videos we’ve got on file. And James was pretty small as a kid, but the Serum kicked in when he was six, and we discovered it had mutated around then as well. He’s twice as strong as Steve and three times as fast. Couple that with his IQ, he’s a pretty deadly opponent.”

“But there’s time for that later,” the General said as he curled an arm around the Director’s waist and from the common room where James, Aaron, Yasha and Barton were watching a football game, they heard a whine.

 _“I can_ hear _your heart rates climbing!_ ” James shouted.

The Director chuckled. “You should all get some sleep,” he said, “Around here…you never know what’s going to happen.”


	14. 2013469

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this one was added out of the plot I've written because I fracking forgot to add the Director and General getting the dodo birds together. It's not as set out as the previous chapters. I'll be posting the next one tomorrow...or today.
> 
> ALSO! SUPERHUSBANDSANDFEELS THIS ONE IS POSTED EARLY BECAUSE OF YOUR LOVELY COMMENT! AND RED*ROBIN I AGREE WHOLEHEARTEDLY! BUT THAT'S WHAT JAMES IS FOR! TO BEAT STEVE'S ASS IF HE TRIES TO MAKE TONY THE BAD GUY AND MAKE HIS DADDY CRY!
> 
> You commenters are beautiful people. Keep it up.  
> And Michelle, I nearly forgot you, thank you for your support of my stories.

“You want to _what_?” Yasha blinked at them. “You _can’t_ be serious.”

“It’s the only way,” Tony shrugged, “I mean, it worked in 616, and those two were worse off than these two.”

“How do you even know they’re attracted to each other?” Clint asked.

“Anthony’s attracted to me,” Steve answered, “and Steven…well…”

“I called him Sweetie yesterday and he blushed,” Tony chuckled, “it was adorable.”

Steve growled and tugged him a little closer and Tony rolled his eyes. “Down boy,” he teased. “I’m _all_ yours, Hon.”

“Good,” Steve replied and Yasha and Clint twitched.

“Ew.” Clint said.

“Seconded,” Yasha nodded and Tasha smacked him on the head.

“So, you’re going to get them to bang and they’re gonna fall in love…hopefully.” Clint said.

“Essentially, yes,” Tony nodded, “it’s not like my double can fall pregnant, but the way they look at us when we’re…”

“Being tooth rottingly sweet and disgustingly in love… _ow_!” Yasha rubbed the back of his head as Tasha gave him a cold look.

“I love you, Honey?” He tried and she frowned further. “Darling?”

“You can stay at SHIELD tonight,” she told him.

“Yes Dear,” Yasha pouted.

“Yes, that,” Tony rolled his eyes. “It’s a…it’s a _longing_ , they’re both lonely and seeing us being like that makes it worse.”

“Your plan includes being even more disgustingly adorable, doesn’t it?” Clint said.

“You know us _so well_ , Clint,” Steve chuckled as he tugged Tony onto his lap and curled an arm around his waist.

“Oh god, I thought we were over the honeymoon stage two decades ago,” Clint whined.

“Making Clint uncomfortable is definitely a bonus,” Tony snickered. “The kids are going to hate this.”

Steve chuckled.

“You want us to make sure they’re in the room when you two are doing this,” Yasha said, “I need sufficient payment…”

“You do this and I’ll cut your paperwork in half,” Tony sighed, “you’re not getting my money, Barnes. Your wife makes nearly as much as I do.”

“My wife makes half as much as James does,” Yasha pointed out, “seriously, he just updated that damn contract. Do you have _any_ idea how much he’s asking per mission now?”

“I signed it yesterday,” Tony rolled his eyes. “You should get a better lawyer if you want more money.”

Yasha grumbled.

 

They kissed more, spent more time touching, longer hugs, longer good morning/hello/goodbye/goodnight kisses, Steve peppered Tony’s neck with hickeys one night and Steven had turned a shade of red Tony hadn’t seen before and Anthony choked on his breakfast when he saw them. Tony wore Steve’s shirts more often, walked around with Steve’s dog tags hanging out of his shirt when they were usually hidden.

“You’re up to something,” James frowned as he and Aaron carried in the new reinforced punching bags. Delivery men were rarely needed when you had super-powered children who do it for free.

“We’re always up to something,” Steve smirked as he raised his eyebrows and James and Aaron groaned. “Get a room, you two,” the blonde grumbled as he carried the six he had slung over his shoulders towards the gym.

Aaron followed with the other six.

 

Tony was perched on a hovering platform, fixing the security camera Carter had broken yesterday when he was throwing fireballs at Peter for stealing a book. Steve was on the ground waiting under the platform.

Normally, Tony would put on the armour, but this was a perfect opportunity for the plan.

He’d just finished when Anthony and Steven walked in, talking to Tasha, and Tony pressed a button on the platform controls to make it jerk about.

He fell off almost instantly with a cry of shock when he landed in Steve’s arms bridal style.

“Oh, hey there, Soldier,” he smiled as he wrapped his arms around Steve’s neck.

Steve chuckled, “Director Stark,” he murmured. “Take a tumble?”

“Little bit,” Tony shrugged and tugged Steve in for a kiss which was _greatly_ reciprocated.

He took a peek at their doubles and saw his blinking owlishly at them, and Steve’s blushing that interesting shade of red again.

Tony wondered what he’d have to do to make Steve turn that colour.

“I can think of a few things,” Steve murmured huskily as he nipped at Tony’s bottom lip. “Though, I think we’d have to go to Malibu to do them.”

“ _Jesus Christ!_ ” James yelled from the common room. “ _Warn me before you start doing that, would you?_ ”

 

“Seems to be working,” Yasha observed one night after the Alts had gone to bed. “Congratulations, my cavities are worth your effort.”

Tasha smacked him.

“You know,” Bruce said as he poured a cup of tea, “some of those old tapes you have on file might help them. You said they had a reaction to the photographs.”

Tony sipped his coffee, “it might be a good idea,” he nodded, “which ones?”

“You’ve got the ones from when we first got together and James’ first two years, right?” Steve asked, “I know we’ve got the wedding, we got it put on DVD last month.”

“Even the ones were I…” Tony swallowed, “without me?”

“Dammit, _I_ cry when we watch them,” Yasha grumbled, “and if you dig out that video of me meeting Aaron and Becky for the first time Rogers, I will kill you.”

Steve smirked, “but it’s so beautiful to watch your mascara run, Buck.”

“Black camouflage war paint,” Yasha glared.

“It was mascara,” Tasha said and Yasha groaned. “I can’t win in this house.”

“Join the club,” Clint said.

“Well, we’re not doing anything at all tomorrow,” Tony said, “none of us, so we’ll all watch them then. Hey, it might even help your double, Bucky, showing him he has got a possibility of a future?”

“Yay,” Yasha whined.


	15. MCU

Tony was…sceptical at first, he didn’t know if he could handle seeing a seventeen-year-old version of himself that wasn’t drunk or high or stoned but still having fun.

But the Director insisted.

It was either that or watch sports.

They were all on the couches and chairs of the common room, Gracie asleep upstairs, and the Director told JARVIS to start playing.

 _“I can’t believe I_ slept _with him, Pep! I mean…I mean he’s_ Captain _freakin’_ America _!_ _What’s he doing sleeping with an unschooled Carrier? I had to_ ask _him where_ it _went for crying out loud!” Seventeen-year-old Tony Stark whined as he stood in front of the camera dressed in a much too large navy button up, jeans and sneakers, glasses a little wonky on his face, his hair sticking up in every direction but down. “I made a mistake. I…I don’t want it to get weird, Pepper. I mean…for all I know he only slept with me because he could pretend I was my Dad…”_

_“Anthony Stark, I’m going to stop you right there,” Pepper snapped. “Steve has been crushing on your annoying, rich, spoilt and frankly charmingly awkward ass for the better part of six months. How many Sires do you think would want to have sex with an unschooled Carrier? Not freaking many. If you want to end this, end it, but dammit, you’ve fallen pretty freaking hard for that six foot two triangle and I’ll be damned if I’m going to let you talk yourself into moving half way across the country to avoid an awkward situation.”_

_Tony whined, “I cried, dammit! I_ cried during sex _, Pepper!”_

_“First times hurt, the breaching is pretty painful,” Pepper shrugged, “and most unschooled Carriers don’t exactly know how to ma…”_

_“_ PEPPER _!” Tony blushed scarlet. “I…I know how to do…to do_ that _…it’s…I cried ‘cause it was the first time a Sire’s touched me without being mean.”_

_“Rhodey touches you all the time, also I’d watch that because Steve’s one of those Sires who asserts over everything and I don’t think Rhodey will appreciate getting his arm ripped off by Captain America.”_

_“Please, Rhodey would consider it an_ honour _,” Tony rolled his eyes, “And he doesn’t count, he’s attracted to female Sires…Ty used to…”_

_“Tiberius Stone was a dick head,” Pepper snapped, “and I’m betting if he comes around again now that Steve’s asserted his claim over you, he’s gonna get one hell of a kick in the ass.”_

_Tony snorted and_ giggled _. “I’d pay a lot of money to hear the sound Ty makes if he comes around and sees Steve.”_

_“So, you’re not gonna run away?” Pepper asked._

_“Nah…is that camera on? Pepper! You’ve been recording me?”_

_“Well, if Steve has second thoughts, I’ll show him your geeky rant of adoration and he’ll fall for those glasses and that ridiculous duckling hair again.”_

“I forgot about that,” the Director groaned as the General smirked at him cockily.

“Was that Steve’s shirt?” Tasha asked.

“Likely,” the Director glared at his husband, “oh shut up. I was _seventeen_.”

“I’d forgotten you’d asked,” the General said, “now it’s coming back, you made some pretty adorable noises, Sweetheart.”

“Be careful or I’ll find that video of James knocking you flat on your ass at twelve.”

“Bullshit,” Clint wheezed.

“No, he’s serious,” the General winced as he rubbed his jaw. “Kid’s always packed a punch.”

 

Steve blushed as the Director on screen went on about the General. No one talked about him like that…not without being seriously creepy…but it felt good to be admired…he guessed.

It was just so confusing and tiring and he was lost in this world, and in this time.

Maybe his double was right.

Maybe Tony  _could_  be his rock.

 

_“Alright, so this is my unborn god child,” Rhodey said as he pointed the camera at Tony’s flat belly, “kid’s gonna be a nightmare, Captain America’s sheer stubbornness mixed with Tones’ brains. I’m not gonna babysit, I draw the line at that. Call me when the kid can buy me a beer.”_

_“Rhodey I swear if you don’t put that camera away I will beat you with it,” Tony threatened as he laid on an examination table._

_“What? I’d think Steve’d want to see his kid’s ultrasound as it’s happening,” Rhodey replied, “Doc, is it okay if I record this?”_

_“It’s not a problem, Lieutenant,” the doctor nodded as Tony glared and lifted his shirt up over his stomach, “now, Mr Stark, how far along do you think you are?”_

_“Two months,” Tony answered immediately. “He…uh…the Sire was the only one.”_

_The doctor nodded and turned on a screen as he picked up a bottle of gel, “this will be cold, I’m sorry.”_

_He squirted the gel onto Tony’s belly and Tony jumped, shivering. The doctor picked up the wand and swivelled it over the gel, spreading it._

_“We should be able to hear the heartbeat,” the doctor said with a smile._

_“Can’t wait to see my niece,” Rhodey said excitedly from behind the camera._

_“Nephew,” Tony corrected._

_“It could be a girl,” Rhodey retorted._

_“I feel like it’s a boy,” Tony shrugged and Rhodey rolled his eyes._

_“Maybe you’re wrong,” Rhodey said._

_Tony snorted._

_“Here we go, Mr Stark,” the Doctor said as he pointed at a tiny pulsating blob on the screen, “it seems healthy though we can’t tell much right now. And…” he swivelled the wand a little more and a tiny, fluttering heartbeat filled the room. “There’s your baby’s heartbeat.”_

_Tony’s eyes were impossibly wide and slowly moistening, his jaw slack for a moment before he snapped it shut._

_“Oh…” he choked out softly. “Rhodey…Rhodey, I can’t get rid of him. I…he’s_ my _Baby…”_

_“Do you think you should talk to Cap about this?” Rhodey said, and he sounded a little choked up too._

_“He’s_ my _Baby, Rhodey. I don’t want…I can’t kill him. You’ve got to understand that…”_

 _“I do, Kid,” Rhodey sighed. “Goddammit Tony, you’re_ pregnant _.”_

_“I think it’s supposed to be the Baby’s actual Sire who’s supposed to cry during the ultrasound,” Tony retorted softly._

_“Yeah, well, Steve’s not here. I’m gonna do it for him.”_

_“You do realise my Baby is going to drive you insane, right?”_

_“Kid’s still gonna be my niece.”_

_“_ Nephew _, dammit.”_

“Aw,” Clint teased as he elbowed Tony in the ribs.

Tony felt all tingly, he didn’t exactly know how to feel about the fact Rhodey had been supportive of the Director wanting to keep James from the beginning. It felt good to know that Rhodey was there for him in every universe.

“Rhodes was a big marshmallow,” Yasha commented, “if that’s how he acted when it wasn’t even his kid, I’d hate to know how he’d acted with his own kid.”

“Anne had to drive him home because he was crying too much,” the Director said absently as the General played with a lock of his hair, twirling it between his fingers almost unconsciously. “She called me to come calm him down.”

“That’s…actually pretty pathetic,” Yasha said and Tasha swatted him again.

“What is this? Pick on Yasha Day?” He cried.

“Yes,” the Director, the General, and Tasha said and Yasha whined.

 

_“Why are you recording me?” Tony huffed as he sat on the kitchen bench, looking about four months along. “Did Pepper and Rhodey put you up to this?”_

_“Well, yes,” Steve said, “I’m a seventy-five-year-old man, Sweetheart. My memory is going to go very soon and I’m going to want to remember when my adorable boyfriend glared at me for three and a half hours straight because the idiots on the board of Stark Industries wanted him to relinquish his position as future CEO of Stark Industries because they’re cranky old men who thinks he should be married to the…what was it you said?_

_“Idiot, moron, dork of a Sire who freaking_ forgot _protection and landed us in this, not that I don’t want my Baby, mess,” Tony rolled his eyes. “There’s a very simple solution to this problem you know.”_

_“I don’t love you, Brat. We’ve only been dating four months.”_

_“Two months, you left after the first night.”_

_“Whatever. I’m not proposing.”_

_“Good, what Carrier in their right mind would want to be married to Captain America? You’ll have a hard time finding someone who’ll say yes if you get on one knee you giant Cheese.”_

_“Pepper might,” Steve said._

_“Pepper will rip your balls off and mount them on her wall if you leave me. She and Rhodey made that very clear when you got back from that mission in wherever the hell your organisation sent you.”_

_“I think I can take them.”_

_“If my Baby’s a Sire, I’m going to make sure he can break you in half if you hurt me.” Tony smirked._

_“Gee, thanks Tony,” Steve sighed, “good to know you’re going to make our child hate me.”_

_Tony grinned ferally._

 

“I did actually think you were joking,” the General said.

“Nope,” the Director smirked. “James could break you in half when he was sixteen. Don’t forget that time he broke your jaw because that little slut…”

“Oh, my god. _She kissed me_!” The General exclaimed.

“She had her tongue down your throat.” The Director scowled, “she’s lucky I didn’t send her to Siberia.”

“What’s this about?” Bruce asked.

“Couple of years ago,” Yasha sniggered, “Steve’s come back from a mission and this Agent, cunning little thing who’d had her eye on the Sire-Dom of the Avengers for a while, drags him down and basically fucks Stevie’s mouth with her tongue.”

“James walked in on them,” Barton grinned.

“I hadn’t even had time to push her away,” the General defended. “It had hardly even been a second.”

“James saw red apparently,” Tasha continued, “next thing Steve knows, he’s lying in medical with a broken jaw, cracked eye socket, dislocated shoulder, and one hell of a bruise.”

“James broke four bones in his hand,” the Director said, “split his knuckles wide open, too. That’s not the first time he’s defended me, defended us.”

“Can we clone him?” Clint pleaded, “I need one for SHIELD in our universe.”

The Director chuckled.

 

_Tony beamed and waved at the camera from the hospital bed and the camera swivelled around to peer over his shoulder at James, who was sleeping in his arms. “You do realise we’re not going to get any sleep for the next few months, right?” Steve said._

_“Duh,” Tony rolled his eyes, but the smile never left his face. “Worth it.”_

_“Definitely,” Steve said, “why_ Christopher _?”_

_“I like it,” Tony shrugged, “what would you have named him?”_

_“James still would have been his first name,” Steve said, “but his middle name would have been Joseph…or Howard.”_

_“Hell no,” Tony said immediately. “Howard will have_ no _influence in James’ life save for ‘if you start acting like your grandfather, you’re going to Military school.”_

_“Gee, thanks Sweetheart.”_

_“Oh shut up, he’s not going to be your size when he’s older, damn, he’s probably only going to be just under six feet.”_

_“You never know,” Steve chuckled._

_“The math doesn’t add up.”_

_“Whatever you say, Sweetheart.”_

“Holy shit,” the General said, “Tony Stark was wrong.”

The Director swatted him, “I can call James. He’ll be here in ten minutes to beat your ass.”

“Whatever you say, Sweetheart,” the General chuckled.

“You do know what’s next, right?” The Director said softly, and the General nodded.

 

Steve never knew if he wanted children, he originally thought he wanted them with Peggy. Back before Bucky fell he imagined children with blonde hair and brown eyes, playing catch with his son in the park, walking his daughter to school every day, waking up in the middle of the night to them crying…

Did the General do it here? Or was he too busy with being an Avenger to take James to play catch or walk Kelsie and Sarah to school?

 

_Tony laughed as Steve made faces at James, who just blinked at him._

_“Our child is depressed,” Steve whined, “this is your fault.”_

_“How is it my fault?” Tony retorted._

_“It’s not mine. I’m perfect.”_

_“Hah, not so much,” Tony rolled his eyes, “he’s just cranky, by the time I get back he’ll be fine.”_

_“You don’t need to come back,” Steve joked, “we’ve got everything handled.”_

_“You’d be lost without me, Steve. You can’t even get James to take a bottle.” Tony answered._

_“I’ll figure it out. Seriously, you should just stay over in Afghanistan. We’d probably miss you a little.” Steve grinned, “go, you’re going to be late.”_

_They kissed quickly and Tony scooped James up and touched his nose to James’. “I love you,” he said, “I love you so much, Baby.”_

_James yawned._

_“That’s adorable,” Steve commented from the floor._

_“You’re gonna lie there for as long as humanly possible, aren’t you?” Tony smirked._

_“Yep, I need to catch up on this Space Trek thing you and Rhodey worship.”_

_“You’re calling it that on purpose, aren’t you?” Tony’s eyes narrowed as he set James on Steve’s chest, fast asleep._

_“Yep,” Steve grinned as he tugged Tony down by his tie for another kiss, “go, you’re already late as it is.”_

“Was that before…” Tony whispered, shaking a little.

“Yeah,” someone said suddenly and they all turned to see James leaning in the door frame with his hands in the pockets of his jeans, “Leo and Francis are screwing and they’re not using the soundproof bedroom. I thought I’d come see what you’re doing.”

“Are you going to be alright?” The Director asked.

“I’m always alright,” James replied as he sat down on the floor beside the Director, legs folded under him and head resting on the Director’s knee.

“There’s some…other things, you should know about what happened in Afghanistan,” the Director said as his fingers curled through James’ hair and gripped the General’s arm. “I was pregnant when I went to Afghanistan, I didn’t know until…until the Ten Rings caused me to miscarry.”

“Fuck,” Clint breathed in horror.

“They didn’t even let me bury him,” the Director said flatly, “Yinsen used that…and the fact I realised I loved Steve while in that cave, to drive me to break out. And after Raza…he uh…when they were going to kill Yinsen, I offered myself.”

“Fuckers,” James hissed, and Tony thought James’ eyes were yellow for a moment. “I should have done a whole lot worse to them for what they did.”

“Trust me,” the General said, “they didn’t suffer nearly enough.”

The Director smiled and Tony wondered exactly what the two soldiers had done to the Ten Rings.

“Luckily, Raza was barren. But he forced me quite a few times…he made me enjoy it, too.”

“Fuck.” Natasha hissed.

“Animal,” James snarled. “Deserved what he got.”

“And what was that?” Tony managed through clenched teeth.

“The stuff of nightmares,” James grinned sadistically and the Director sighed.

_Steve sighed and plucked the bottle out of James’ mouth before cuddling the infant close, “I’m gonna find Daddy, Cricket,” he promised, “I’m gonna find the people who took him from us and make them pay.”_

_James whimpered and whined against Steve’s chest and Steve tried to soothe him but the infant kept crying._

_“I know Cricket,” Steve whispered. “I miss Daddy too.”_

 

“Well, I didn’t need my heart broken,” Clint said quietly. “Dammit, that physically hurts.”

“All I could think was the last thing I said to Tony was that he shouldn’t come back,” the General said, “I felt like an ass.”

“You were an ass,” James said and the Director gave him a soft swat on the head.

“Your Pops was just joking around.” He said.

“I know,” James shrugged. “Last thing I said to Aaron before he got his arm cut off was ‘if you had a metal arm, we’d be out of here by now’.”

 

Steve wouldn’t have been able to take care of a child without his partner with him. It would have been so much worse, so much harder, with his current job. Did the General go on missions when the Director was missing?

 

_Steve picked James up and cuddled him close as he went about making a bottle, humming a wordless tune as he did._

_He shifted James so he could give the infant a bottle, when he went white as a ghost and the bottle dropped to the floor._

_“Oh…” he choked, “oh…oh god…why?”_

_He quickly set James back into the crib and left the room.  A moment later there was a CRACK._

 

“What the hell?” Clint said.

“James’ eyes changed colour,” the General explained, “they went from blue to brown…if Tony hadn’t been found…alive, I never would have been able to look James in the eye again.”

Tony couldn’t imagine losing the person he loved, had a child with, and having to look into their eyes every day through his child’s. It would be… _unbearable_.

“You put the biggest damn hole in my wall,” the Director grumbled and the General laughed softly and kissed his cheek.

Yasha sniffled and wiped his face suspiciously. “Just put the next damn video up.” He said thickly.

 

Tony had…Tony had nice eyes, they were very vibrant and the gold twinkled when he was laughing or working. Steve had never noticed the gold before but now that he thought about it, he’d always noticed it at some point.

He couldn’t imagine looking at his child and having his partner stare back…dammit, he would never be able to look his child in the eye again. He wouldn’t be able to at all.

 

Instead of another video, a photo came up on screen. It was the Director and General on the tarmac of an airport, the Director had James, six months old this time, in his arms, and was kissing the Director. Both men were crying.

“I remember Uncle Rhodey telling me about this,” James said, “you hit him after he snapped the photo.”

“I did,” the Director said, “deserved it, too.”

“I like the photo,” the General commented.

“Oh, I like it,” the Director nodded, “it’s one of my favourites, but Rhodey always has a goddamn camera on him. What’s next?”

“Expo,” James growled.

Tony blinked at him, “what’s wrong with the expo?”

“I don’t know,” James replied sarcastically. “Maybe the first Expo I ever went to was because my Dad was _dying_.”

“I’m _fine_ , Baby,” the Director assured him.

“Uh-huh,” James gave him a critical look.

Tony swatted him lightly upside the head.

 

_The workshop was bright and loud as Steve walked in and over to Tony, who was hunched over the work bench._

_“Tony, you need to sign these forms for the…”_

_“Steve, Honey, little bus…”_

_“Tony, these are importan…”_

_“I’m sure they are, but this is more…”_

_“_ Anthony Stark _,” Steve growled._

_“Ouch, full name,” Tony commented with a smirk as he slid from the work bench and flitted across the workshop, “I’ll do it later, I’m really busy…”_

_“The Expo isn’t a priority right now, Tony.”_

_“The Expo is…necessary,” Tony responded._

_“No, the Expo is your ego at its most obnoxious. Pepper’s sent me down because she has some strange idea that I can make you do things.”_

_“You can, just not sign paperwork,” Tony winked._

_“And she’s pissed off, you_ sold _your art collection! No, you donated it to the Louvre!”_

_“It’s a lovely museum. And modern art is awf…hey!” Tony scooped up a framed comic strip from the forties of Captain America and Bucky’s characters dressing up as an old lady and her grandson. “Did this actually happen or were they stretching the truth?”_

_“Tony.”_

_“This is going up, right now.”_

_“No it isn’t…_ Tony _!”_

_They chased each other around the workshop until Tony scrambled onto the kitchenette bench and took down the frame there and hung the comic strip. “That’s art,” he smirked._

_“Pepper also needs you to talk to the Wind Farm…”_

_“Don’t say Wind Farm, I’ll say something inappropriate…”_

_“And I need to talk to you about something important…”_

_“Can it wait? I’m a bit bu…”_

_“No, it can’t. It’s very important…”_

_“James’ birthday was last week, what’s so important that isn’t about him?”_

_“It’s got something to do with him…”_

_“If it was really important you’d have done it before his birth…”_

_“Dammit Tony! I’m trying to ask you to marry me!” Steve shouted, and then stopped, eyes wide._

_Tony, still standing on the bench, stared at him, his mouth agape._

_Steve pulled out a ring box and fell to one knee, “it’s been two years, and I can tolerate being in the same room as you I think.” He joked, “I love you, we’ve got James; we’ve got a real future together, Tony. And I promised I’d ask you to marry me if we could still stand each other when James was two. All I asked you was you couldn’t say no.”_

_“Uh…” Tony swallowed. “Steve…I…”_

_“You could say yes tomorrow or you could say yes a year from now. You just can’t say no, remember?” Steve said as he pocketed the ring box. “Come on, James wants to go to the beach.”_

“The arguing hasn’t changed,” James groaned, “every freaking day.”

“Why do you think I couldn’t tell you?” The Director exclaimed, “You asked me to marry you the day I was going to tell you about the poisoning!”

“You could have said something before that!”

“I only just ran out of options! I was doing my Will and Testament when you came in!”

James whistled loudly. “Don’t start this argument again; I’m still traumatised from the last time.”

Tony felt a little shaky, it had been bad enough that he’d had to leave Pepper when he was dying, but leaving a two-year-old and the person he loved? The Board would rip them apart, at the very least they’d take his kid’s right as CEO away from them.

“I’m really freaking glad you didn’t leave Stark Industries to me,” James commented, “I don’t freaking want it. I earn enough working for SHIELD.”

“Your contract is ridiculous,” Yasha replied, “one point six billion per mission? How do you even get paid that much?”

“Can I have a loan?” Clint asked, “my SHIELD pay was shit.”

“They pay their weapons very well,” James smirked.

Tony stole a glance at Steve, who was staring at him, and he blushed and looked away, swallowing.

“Please don’t tell me you’ve got the wedding photos coming up?” James whined.

“Yep,” the General said as he ruffled James’ hair.

 

Steve always thought he’d do something romantic if he ever proposed…but he guessed that the way the General had was great and it seemed to work despite the poisoning and they were happy no matter how they became engaged.

He ached, deeply, for someone he could share his life with.

 

The first photo was of the Director, dressed in a black tux with red and gold cufflinks and a white tie and a white flower pinned to his breast pocket. He was grinning at the camera and a gold band glinted on his finger, there were rubies and diamonds in a pattern all around it. Tony noticed his collar was made of lace, as well as his cuffs and his hair was styled to bring out the bronze streaked through it.

The next photo was the General, he wasn’t wearing his military uniform, surprisingly, his suit was black as well, but there was no lace and his tie was black as well. His cufflinks were silver and blue and his medals were pinned to his breast. He was grinning too, and just behind him was the shield.

It was James in the next photo, three years old, hair styled and gelled, brown eyes bright and impossibly huge for a two-year-old. He was dressed in a suit as well, only his tie was red, white and blue with gold stars on the red stripes and he was wearing red sneakers instead of dress shoes. He looked excited.

“Most boring damn day of my life,” James said and the Director swatted him. “I couldn’t breathe, I couldn’t play with Aaron, Uncle Rhodey gave me this look that told me I’d be dead if I tried anything stupid, and then you made me stay with Aunt Pepper and Uncle Happy for three weeks.”

“We missed you during those three weeks,” the Director said.

“Speak for yourself,” the General retorted and the Director swatted him.

“What’s with the lace?” Tony said suddenly.

“Lace?” The Director said, then blinked, “oh yeah. Steve wanted a traditional wedding, and Male Carriers would wear this hideous lacy robe thing back in the forties. Uh, no. So we compromised. I’d put lace on my suit and he wouldn’t do the ‘you belong to me, you are under my protection, and you will serve me til death’ bullshit speech.”

“It’s romantic,” the General rolled his eyes.

“It’s _demeaning_ , I’m not some little House Carrier.” The Director frowned.

“Considering Dad makes nearly seven times as much as you do working for SHIELD alone,” James said, “he takes care of you.”

“James,” the General said.

“Yes?”

“Shut up.”

“Weren’t Carriers treated as the weaker Class back in the forties?” Bruce inquired, “much like women were in our universe?”

“Carriers were, and still are in some places, treated like dirt,” James growled, “if you were upper class, Carriers were kept under lock and key and made to look desirable so their Sires could advance their society standing by marrying them off to other rich families at fourteen/fifteen years old. Lower class were prostitutes by an early age unless you could pass for a Beta. It hasn’t gotten much better in a lot of places, some rich families still don’t educate Carriers at all about sex.”

Tony felt ill at the thought of people in their late teens have no idea about how sex worked in theory. It was a staple in education everywhere.

“Mother and Dad never thought it was important information,” the Director shrugged, “Dad was a Sire, Mother was a Beta…it’s very rare for a Sire and a Beta to have a Carrier…”

“Asshole was gonna give him to _Stane_ ,” James snarled. “What I wouldn’t give to have been old enough to break Stane’s neck when he was alive.”

The Director stroked James’ hair soothingly and James pressed against the touch… _purring_?

“Is he…” Clint said, but the picture changed.

It was the alter, Pepper on the Director’s side and Natasha on the General’s, dressed in beautiful blue dresses with red hemming and around the waist. James was standing between them, beaming, and the Director and General were kissing.

“So how does this work?” Clint asked, “I mean…”

“Ah,” the Director said, “here it’s ‘you may now seal the Claim’. It’s directed at the Sire or Beta.”

“ _Claim_?” Clint just blinked at him.

“Claiming is like imprinting,” Bruce said, “for example, the Director was _claimed_ by the General the night James was conceived, right?”

“You _have_ been doing your research,” the Director nodded.

“Thank you. Anyway, as you both spent more time together, this Claim strengthened. From what I’ve read, the Claim, when fully strengthened, releases an endorphin that makes the pair completely dependent on each other.”

“Yes, essentially,” Yasha said, “it’s like the best drug in the world…actually, it’s better.”

He kissed Tasha’s hair and she smiled at him. “You’re still sleeping at SHIELD.” She told him as she curled closer.

Yasha whined.

“Don’t start,” James groaned, “heart rates, people.”

“Exactly how good is your hearing?” Tony asked, curious.

“I knew Dad was pregnant with Carter before he even had the symptoms,” James shrugged, “kid had a heart beat like a race horse.”

The next photo took Tony’s breath away; it was the Director and the General standing in a gazebo by the looks of it on the side of a lake at sunset, dressed in their suits. The Director had one hand on the General’s chest the other curled up around his neck, and the General had one hand over the Director’s and the other around his waist, their foreheads were touching, staring into the other’s eyes, and on their joined hands between them their rings glowed orange, like the lake behind them with the trees silhouetted in black.

“Oh god,” James said, “sex eyes. I don’t need to see this. Gross!”

The General smacked him on the head and he whined. “That hurt.”

“Good.”

The next photo was the General and James. James was perched on the General’s shoulders, beaming, and the General was smiling too.

“God, you were tiny,” Yasha commented. “Seriously, you were pathetic.”

“Haha,” James rolled his eyes, “pick on the asthmatic, why don’t you?”

“You’re _asthmatic_?” Steve exclaimed and they all stared at James, who smirked.

“Used to be,” he said, “Serum activated, gained about five inches, a bit of muscle mass and my asthma and bad eyes cleared.”

“Including the bronchitis, anaemia, brittle bones disease, diabetes, pneumonia, your heart murmur, the…” the Director listed.

“Alright, whatever,” James rolled his eyes, “I wasn’t healthy, I get it.”

“Kid, you shouldn’t be _alive_.” Tony said.

“I _know_ ,” James sighed, “doctors say it all the time. Half of the new doctors at SHIELD nearly burst into your office and demand I be taken off active duty every time I come into SHIELD with something broken or split open.”

“If you didn’t jump the gun…” The General began but James groaned.

“Don’t start this.” James rolled his eyes, “I know what I’m doing despite what you and half the United States Military believe. Half of those old bastards have never looked down the barrel of a hostile’s gun, let alone fought in a World War.”

The next photo was the Director and James. James was in the Director’s arms, his own wrapped around the Director’s neck, grinning. He was tiny there, too. The Director was beaming, eyes looking a little shiny.

James’ watch was beeping insistently and he glanced at it, shrugged, and turned it off.

“If it was important, they’d know to call my communicator,” he said.

 

_It was the Helicarrier laboratory and Steve and Tony were arguing, James perched on the counter behind them._

_“You were trying to make Dr Banner_ hulk out _around James! How could you?”_

_“He was perfectly safe, Dr Banner said the Hulk won’t hurt children!”_

_“Not purposely! I’ve seen the videos! James could have been thrown through a window!”_

_“What the hell is your problem anyway? Ever since we got here you’ve been acting like I’m the bad guy!”_

_“My problem is you’re not taking this seriously Stark!”_

_“I am taking this seriously!”_

_“Maybe Natasha’s initial report was right! You’re selfish! You’re playing hero when all you fight for is yourself!” Steve yelled. “Big man in a suit of armour, take that off, what are you?”_

_“Genius, Billionaire Philanthropist,” Tony retorted instantly._

_Steve rolled his eyes, “I know guys with none of that and they’re twice the hero you are! You’re nothing but a selfish brat!”_

_“Don’t you_ dare _think all I think of is myself, Steve!” Tony hissed, “James is my_ world _, and has_ always _been my world from the moment I saw him on that ultrasound screen! I’d give everything if it meant he’d be safe! My company, my money, Iron Man, my life! If you can’t see that then I don’t even know who you are anymore!”_

_There were tears rolling down Tony’s face and Steve looked on the verge, he opened his mouth to respond when James slid between them, “no!”_

_“James, so help me god I will…” Steve began._

_“You’ll what?” Tony growled, “hurt him? Over_ my dead body _.”_

_“Stop it!” James sobbed, “Yousse supposed ta luv each other…yousse did yestaday…you…”_

_“No,” Steve said as he dropped to his knees beside James, “no, Cricket, Daddy and I still love each other…parents argue, Daddy and I do it all the time, you know when Daddy get’s really mad and makes Poppa sleep on the couch? This is like that only…”_

_“It’s worse,” James hissed, “go away.”_

_Steve looked devastated. “Jamie…”_

_“Yer hurtin’ Daddy. Go aw…”_

The General rubbed his temples, “oh, that wasn’t one of our finer moments.”

“Nope,” James said, “asshole.”

“For crying out loud, it was the damn sceptre!”

“Don’t give a damn,” James growled and the Director smacked them both.

“Stop it. It was a very long time ago.” He barked, and the two soldiers settled.

Tony…didn’t know how to react. He didn’t know how to…that had been worse than his and Steve’s argument on the Helicarrier. Why were they showing them this?

“Two years ago,” the Director said as he gripped the General’s hand, “there was an explosion caused by a group of young heroes trying to take on a group of villains. About three hundred people, including the heroes, were killed, and the government went after all super heroes, at first I thought it was a good idea, registering super heroes, and Steve didn’t. We started fighting and eventually we separated.”

“You’re kidding,” Clint said, “you two are practically joined at the hip!”

The Director chuckled, “seems like that, doesn’t it? After we separated, I had JARVIS take a closer look at the SHRA…and found a hidden detail. They didn’t want super heroes to be registered, they wanted to turn them into an army, with James and our other son, Leo, as the leaders, and I withdrew my support, tried to talk to Steve but…”

“I was being an idiot,” the General shrugged, “I just thought it was the withdrawal, I had no idea…thank god Leo didn’t just accept we were filing for divorce.”

“While this shit was going down,” James said, “I was on a six month op in Siberia. Leo called me, told me these two were getting a divorce, and I had two months left on the op. Finished it in half a day and went home.”

The Director stroked James’ hair, “locked us in the panic room down the hall,” he smiled, “told us we could come out when we _talked_.”

Tony blinked in surprise, “most kids just…accept it…” he said.

James snorted, “I had an inkling this SHRA bullshit was hiding something to begin with, but _Captain America_ can’t pick sides, and I wasn’t supporting the SHRA. I was more focused on hunting down the bastard who killed those people. And these two are stubborn, I knew they wouldn’t have talked to each other. And the day these two actually argue enough to divorce is the day I eat my shield.”

“Thought I’d find you here,” Aaron commented as he flopped down beside James on the floor and sprawled across the blonde’s lap. “What’re we doing?”

“Watching home videos,” James answered, “we just saw the argument.”

“Oh, that was bad,” Aaron said, “didn’t help that Uncle Tony was pregnant with the Iron Geek at the time.”

“What?” Steve gasped.

The Director sighed, “The invasion happened about three months after our wedding and I was about two months along with Leo. We were planning to have another baby, but we didn’t think it would happen so soon.”

“Considering the amount of time we spent trying during our honeymoon,” the General said, “it wasn’t really that much of a surprise.”

“Lenny’s the only kid they actually planned to have,” James said, “I think Kelsie might have been planned, but Blaine certainly wasn’t.”

The Director and General shrugged and grinned at each other.

 

Steve didn’t know what to think. Not only was the argument between the General and the Director twice as awful as the one he and Tony had, but their son having to break them up? Telling the General to leave…and the Director being pregnant during the invasion?

Steve didn’t know anymore.


	16. MCU Tony

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I LIVE!!!!!!!!!!!

The alarm was loud and it jerked Tony awake almost instantly. He groaned as he was woken and stumbled out of bed to pull on his clothes then made his way downstairs to find his teammates and the younger kids gathered around the giant TV in the common room.

“What’s…” he stopped as he noticed what was on screen, CNN’s coverage of a battle in downtown Manhattan. They were robots…Doom Bots, the banner along the bottom of the screen said. The reporter was in the thick of the battle and a Doom Bot appeared behind her, bladed hand prepared to strike, when Steve’s shield lodged itself into the robot’s head and it sizzled out.

Captain America dropped out of the sky. _“Well, wasn’t that exciting?”_ He asked rhetorically. _“You guys need to skedaddle, it’s gonna get pretty hectic here soon.”_

The camera cut out to a wider angle, from a Helicopter by the looks of it, just as Iron Man arrived and blasted a group of Doom Bots with the repulsors and an arrow pinged off another robot’s head and exploded.

Clint and the Barton Triplets whooped.

Captain America took a lucky punch to the jaw and stumbled back, lip split and blood pouring down his cheek as the kids booed the Doom Bots. Tony’s heart clenched as the robot landed another blow, and another, when Cap grabbed it around the neck and crushed its throat. He tossed it aside just as a woman with dark red hair wearing a skin tight black cat suit with yellow Widow’s Bite gauntlets flitted past him and wrapped her thighs around another robot’s neck and crushed its head.

Winter Soldier punched a hole in a robot’s chest and shot the head off another from five hundred feet away with a hand gun.

Holy shit.

It wasn’t long until the battle was over and the reporter from before ran up to Captain America…James, who was standing beside the red haired woman.

 _“Colonel, what was your strategy for this battle?”_ She asked as she held the microphone to James’ face.

 _“Hit’em hard, hit’em fast, hit’em first,”_ he grinned tiredly. _“The Avengers are a first response team, Ma’am, it’s our job to ensure civilian safety first and foremost. Battle strategy is worked into that main goal. In cases where Civilians aren’t a factor, our strategies change to fit the mould.”_

The camera shifted to where Iron Man and Hawkeye were embracing. Hawkeye was wearing a garish purple costume straight out of a Robin Hood story and Iron Man had his helmet off, revealing a mess of dark tangles, tanned skin, cerulean eyes, a sharp jaw, full lips and thick stubble.

 _“I think they’re a little busy,”_ the Reporter grinned and the Camera shifted to a teenaged African-American boy dressed in a red, white and blue costume.

_“Patriot, this is the first time since the squid incident at the harbour that the Young Avengers have joined the Avengers in battle. Do you have any comments on the extended absence?”_

_“I’m just the leader of the Young Avengers, but I still follow Cap’s orders. He wanted us out here today, but I think it has to do with our team work during the Squid attack. Cap is a lot stricter about team work than you’d think.”_ He said.

_“Are you considering your options when you turn eighteen next year? Avengers, Ultimates or are you going to join the military?”_

_“I don’t know yet. The Avengers already have one patriotically themed hero, the Ultimates might be the way to go.”_

Sarah turned off the TV and shouted, “alright, start setting the table! We’ve got maybe twenty minutes before they get home! Dot, get _Luigi’s_ on the phone, tell them the usual! Medical can only take so much of their whining!”

Tony snatched Sarah’s arm before she ran off. “What’s going on?” He asked.

“The Avengers always come back here for pizza and hang around for the rest of the day after a battle,” Sarah explained, “you can help if you want.”

 

The Director and the General were the first ones back and the Director grabbed one of the _fifty_ pizzas off the bench.

“The Avengers have been briefed on who you are,” he said, “so you won’t get shot or anything when they see you.”

“Thanks?” Steve said.

“And help yourself to the pizza,” the General said as he grabbed four slices and went into the common room.

Iron Man enters a few minutes later and peck’s the Director on the cheek before he snags another pizza box.

He’s taller than Tony expected, about as tall as the General and leaner, and was wearing ripped black skinny jeans and a Harvard t-shirt. He also had glasses, thick rectangular black frames that were sitting on his face crookedly.

He looked barely twenty-two.

“Hey,” he said with a short wave. “I’m Leo.”

And then he began devouring the pizza hungrily.

James bounced in next, lip already half healed and a plaster on the cut on his cheek, followed by the red haired woman Tony saw fighting with the Avengers.

She was in her early twenties, maybe twenty-three, with long fiery red hair, pale skin and sharp green eyes.

She was the spitting image of Natasha, but those flushed red lips and wicked smile was all Yasha.

“Becky Barnes,” she greeted cheerfully. “Make a joke and I’ll kill you. I'm Black Widow.”

Clint’s jaw snapped shut and Rebecca beamed and somersaulted over James to get to the pizza first.

“Cheating!” James called as she sat gracefully at the table and winked at him, smirking.

“Goddammit, Barton!” Aaron yelled as he chased after Hawkeye.

Hawkeye had short bleach blond hair, creamy skin and ice blue eyes that glittered mischievously as he snagged another Pizza box and flitted over to Leo, who tucked himself under the blonde’s arm contently.

“Francis Barton,” he introduced himself, “Fifty times more awesome than my Dad and Iron Man 2.0’s husband.”

“Only ‘cause you’ve got good aim, Barton,” Aaron retorted. “Because he’s not with you for your brains and looks.”

James made a strangled sound. “Please, don’t make jokes about my little brother’s sex life.”

Aaron rolled his eyes and grabbed another pizza box. “Who the hell ordered anchovies and chicken?” He asked.

“Me,” James snatched it away.

“If you weren’t the most alpha-male Sire in the world,” Rebecca called. “I’d say you were pregnant, Jimmy!”

“He would need to have actual sex to get pregnant, Princess,” Francis said. “Because I’m not sure what he and Winnie do, but it isn’t sex. Hey, Caps Lock, is that thing with the eagle statue and the thing you do while reciting the Declaration of Independence considered sex?”

“Is that thing you do with that red wig and the Celtic longbow considered sex, Merida?” Leo retorted. “I was prepared for twigs and leaves and shiny things in my bed, not a Disney Princess.”

Tony laughed at Clint and Francis’ insulted faces and then a drop dead gorgeous blonde twenty-year-old dressed in black tights, red boots, a blue crop top with a white star in the middle of her chest, red gloves and a red, white and blue ribbon holding her hair back in a high pony tail strutted in. She was twenty, barely, with sun-kissed skin and cerulean eyes.

“Moron,” she nodded to James, “Idiot.” He she nodded to Aaron.

“Mickey,” James said. “Lady Liberty.”

“Shut it,” she shoved him and turned to the Avengers. “Mikaela Rogers. Future Carrier-Dom of the Avengers, And Liberty.”

“As if, Goldilocks,” Rebecca snorted.

“Fight for dominance when I’m dead, hmm?” The Director suggested as he pecked Mikaela on the cheek. “Don’t break our guests, Sweetie.”

“Yes, Daddy,” Mikaela said and the Director left the kitchen.

Clint wolf whistled as Mikaela walked past him, and she turned and smiled at him. “Oh Honey, you couldn’t handle me.”


	17. 2013469

James leaned against the wall beside Leo and Aaron.

"They have potential," Rebecca said from where she was perched on the back of the couch. "But they don't have the connections."

Francis, cuddling Leo, nodded. "They're wild cards. We can't trust them. Not yet, anyway."

"I'd need to see how they handle a battle situation first," James said. "Next time we're called out, throw the fight, but not enough to get yourselves or civilians killed. Hopefully, they'll come to our  _rescue_."

"You want to Possum?" Aaron said. "I mean, it's a good plan and all, but last time we pulled a Possum, you nearly got your head taken off."

"I was fifteen last time we pulled a Possum, Ron," James rolled his eyes. "So we're in agreement?"

"I'll tell the others," Rebecca said.

"Thanks, Beck," James smiled brightly.

Rebecca ducked her head, her burning cheeks hidden by her red hair.


	18. MCU Tony

Horror filled Tony as Leo was thrown through the side of a building by one of the creatures attacking New York.

An hour ago, this universe’s Avengers were called out to fight an army of genetically altered super monsters created by a crazy geneticist, and nearly half an hour ago, the creatures had gained the upper hand in the battle.

Sarah, tucked into his side and gripping his shirt tightly, sobbed as James was smashed into a car and didn’t get up.

Tony looked away, blinking away the tears.

Tim sobbed in Natasha’s lap. “Please,” the toddler pleaded brokenly. “Help! Help!”

“You _have_ to help them!” One of the triplets begged Clint. “Please! You’re the only ones who can!”

“The Young Avengers…” Steve began, but Sarah cut him off.

“The Young Avengers are on the other side of the world!” She yelled. “They won’t get back in time!”

“We can’t just let them die, Steve,” Bruce said slowly. “We could help them. We could.”

“They’re on the other side of New York and the only one of us who can fly is Stark,” Clint pointed out. “How are we even supposed to get there in time?”

“The Avenge-Jet,” Sarah said. “We have a second Avenge-Jet in the hangar. You can use that.”

Tony looked at Steve, and he saw the blonde’s jaw tighten.

“Alright,” Steve said. “Avengers, suit up.”

 

The Avenge-Jet, thankfully, had autopilot and once they were all suited up, they headed out to the battle.

 _“Stark, you’re on air support. Without Thor you’re our eyes in the sky.”_ Steve said over the comm as the jet landed.

“Got it, Cap,” Tony said, and the battle began.

They’d begun to beat the creatures back and had rescued the Avengers when Tony saw a school bus trapped under a fallen billboard, a class of children maybe Sarah’s age being closed in on by over a dozen of the monsters.

He started towards the bus when he looked back at his team. Cap said to keep his eyes on them…

He heard a scream and whipped around, one of the creatures had grabbed the bus driver and was choking him.

Tony blasted towards the bus and blew the creature away, then used the last of his heat seekers to take down the rest of them.

 _“Stark! Where the hell are you? Hawkeye’s surrounded!”_ Steve roared over the comms.

 

The battle was won once Leo’s armour rebooted and he used a high pitched frequency to make the creatures’ insides turn to goo and Tony landed, mouth open to congratulate everyone on a job well done, when Steve got up in his face.

“What the hell was that, Stark?” Steve barked angrily. “You get distracted by your own arrogance? Clint was almost killed!”

“There were _children_ , Rogers!” Tony snapped. “Was I supposed to just let them die?”

“You tell your _team_ and we go save them!” Steve hissed. “That’s how it works! The ones on the ground do all the work and the fella in the sky tells them where they’re needed!”

“Not even you could have gotten there in time!” Tony shouted. “I was doing my job!”

“You were show boating, Stark!” Steve retaliated.

“Stop it!” Natasha snapped. “Stark, Clint was surrounded! You saw that!”

“He’s blind about everything except himself,” Steve growled.

“Just shut up all of you!” Clint barked. “We’re never going to get home unless we work together!”

“We should just cut Stark out and be done with it!” Steve snapped at Clint, and Natasha started shouting angrily in Russian and then it was all in, Bruce off to the side tinged slightly green as he fought to keep calm.

And then Steve’s fist collided with the side of Tony’s helmet, denting it enough so it bit into the skin around his eye socket and blood oozed down the side of his face.

Tony was up in an instant, repulsors charging, when James and Leo were between them, Leo’s hand on Tony’s chest and James holding his shield in front of Steve.

“ _ENOUGH_!” James thundered in a voice that would put Thor to shame. “Get back to the mansion!”

Steve, Natasha and Clint held their ground, and a dark look crossed James’ face.

“Now!” He roared, and fear skittered down Tony’s spine at the pure rage in James’ tone.

The others bolted, obviously hearing the rage as well, and Tony went to go with them when James grabbed his shoulder. “You can ride back with us,” he murmured. “I’d rather you stay as far away from Steve as possible right now.”

Tony nodded, swallowing, and let James lead him to the other Avenge-Jet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> don't forget to review!


	19. 2013469

James fought back a flinch as he turned Tony’s head to the side. “Hold still,” he murmured as he pushed the tip of the needle into Tony’s skin and pushed down on the plunger.

Tony winced, “it stings,” he said softly.

James chuckled. “It’ll stop in a moment,” he assured him as he strung the thread onto the needle. He’d always been good at stitches and began to sow the gash on Tony’s face together.

“It shouldn’t scar,” he smiled, “I’m pretty good with a needle.”

“I hope so, I need my face.” Tony replied instantly and James laughed softly.

They were silent for a long moment and then James said, “I was seventeen the first time I killed someone.”

Tony didn’t say anything, so he continued.

“His name was Aldrich Killian,” Tony’s fists clenched at the name and James raised an eyebrow.

“Killian wanted to hurt Dad, and you’ve seen how Dad is around me, so he kidnapped me and tortured me, used me to get to Dad and it worked,” he continued. “I fought back, though, I bided my time, I knew Killian wouldn’t be able to resist killing me in front of Dad, and I broke free the moment I saw Dad and Killian and I went toe-to-toe.”

“He had the upper hand, I didn’t have a weapon and he could breathe fire, Dad’s suit was ruined and the Avengers were on the other side of the planet at the time. I was on my own, so I faked dying, faked losing, and the sound Dad made when I played possum is still in my nightmares, but it worked and Killian let his guard down.”

“And I ripped his fucking head off with my bare hands,” James cut the thread and began cleaning away the rest of the blood, “I decided to join the army after that night, I enlisted on my eighteenth birthday and left for World War III for five years, I spent part of one of those years in a cave in Afghanistan, so I know a little bit about what you went through.”

Tony was staring at him with shiny eyes.

“Tony, Steve was out of line,” James told him, “he was _way_ out of line, your whole team was out of line. Saving those kids was the right choice, civilians come first, they _always_ come first and they haven’t learned that.” He smiled brightly and tapped Tony’s Reactor with the tips of two of his fingers, “but you have.”

“I…” Tony swallowed.

“I’m on your side, Tony,” James promised. “I’m the guy in your corner, I’ll be there for you if you need me there; don’t just ride this out, because if you do that they’re going to keep treating you like they did today after the battle.”

Tony blinked rapidly and James smiled as he taped a wad of gauze over the wound and pressed a kiss to Tony’s forehead.


	20. 2013469

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd like to point out some things:  
> While I will be adding more of the other pairings (Clint/Darcy Bruce/Betty) the primary relationships in this story are Tony/Steve, Director/General, Francis/Leo, Natasha/Bucky and Tash/Yasha.  
> Also, MCU Clint's use of the word 'gay' is jokingly, and 2013469 Clint used it a lot at the Director and General and Leo and Francis. Trust me, if either of the Clints actually meant it, they'd have had their jaws broken by James.

Leo scowled as he slammed Steve against the hangar wall.

“What,” he snarled. “The fuck is _wrong_ with you?”

“Stark was out of…” Clinton began, but Leo pointed his gauntlet at the younger version of his father-in-law.

“Not another word from anyone but Steve,” he hissed. “I’ll get to the rest of you in a moment.”

“Stark didn’t follow orders,” Steve growled. “Clint was nearly killed because…”

“Because he did his job?” Francis spat. “The Director would have done the same thing! Any of us would have done the same thing!”

“Disobeyed direct orders?” Steve yelled. “I thought you were supposed to be _better_ than us!”

“We put civilians before ourselves,” Bianca Banner, tall and curvy with long dark brown hair and brown eyes, though at the moment they blazed emerald green, growled. “More than once we’ve had to leave a team mate behind to save the people we swore to protect.”

“A team is supposed to look out for each other!” Natasha snapped. “A team is supposed to follow their leader!”

Aaron snorted. “Your leader is a dick,” he said, “and you follow his lead just fine when it comes to Anthony. Now James might have let you three off easy this time, but next time you _abuse_ Anthony like that again you’ll be wishing you’d never even been born.”

“I could take him,” Natasha smirked. “He’s…”

“He’s sick of this shit,” James barked as he strode up to them, “you’re supposed to protect and be there for each other, not gang up on one member because he isn’t a soldier or an agent. You too, Bruce, he’s your friend and you stood there and did _nothing_ while these three hurt him.”

“The Hulk…” Bruce began to defend, but Bianca cut him off.

“Bullshit, Banner!” she snapped. “You were fighting the Hulk because you knew he would have protected Tony and didn’t want to get on the Captain’s bad side. You were looking out for your own skin!”

“If Stark can’t take a little reprimanding…” Steve began, and James’ fist collided with the wall beside his head, leaving a hole several inches deep in the thick concrete and splitting a long crack nearly ten feet long in the wall.

“Reprimanding is telling him his aim was slightly off!” He snarled. “Reprimanding him doesn’t involve him losing an eye if your punch had landed an inch to the left!”

“Is he okay?” Bianca gasped.

James looked at her and nodded, “he’ll be fine, as long as he stays away from his team for a few days.”

“He’s injured?” Steve blinked. “The helmet should…”

“The helmet was already damaged,” Leo said lowly, cerulean eyes flashing. “But your punch dented it inwards and a shard of metal left a cut around his right eye. If it had been deeper or just an inch to the left, Tony would have been dead or he would have lost his eye.”

“I…” Steve swallowed. “I…I…”

“Don’t apologise to us,” Francis scowled. “We don’t need or want it. Tony shouldn’t either considering, but he’ll forgive you. I don’t know why, but he will.”

“I’ve got half a mind to move him to Avengers Tower,” Bianca said, “and not let him go back with you to your universe but it isn’t my call.”

“Colonel,” Mikaela called from her perch on the wing of the Avenge-Jet, “do you think we can make them into a team? Because I’m not confident we can.”

“I’m optimistic,” James frowned, “but barely. We’ll give them another two or so weeks for Tony to heal and for these four to earn his undeserved trust back and I’ll make my decision then. You’re dismissed.”

 

Four days later, James was leaning against the kitchen counter as the Alts apologised to Tony, brown eyes almost black and cold as he narrowed them at the Alts.

“Tony…” Steve said slowly, swallowing. “Tony…we’d like to ask your forgiveness. We were out of line the other day, I’m sorry for hurting you and for…for reprimanding…”

James rumbled.

“Uh…abusing you,” Steve corrected. “About saving those kids…civilians come first and I know that now.”

“And I’m sorry, too,” Bruce said quietly, “for not helping you. I was…I was scared of getting on Steve’s bad side.”

Tony blinked owlishly, and then looked at James, who smiled. “I told you,” he said, “I’m in your corner, and so is my team. Your team means it, Tony. They’re sorry. They’re still assholes, but they’re sorry.”

Tony swallowed and turned back to his team. “I accept,” he said softly. “Thank you for apologising. And I’m…”

“Tony, if you say sorry I’m going to get the Triplets to do horrible things to your armour,” James warned lightly. “You did nothing wrong. _Right_?”

“You didn’t do anything wrong,” Steve nodded hastily. “Tony, there’s nothing for you to apologise for.”

Tony nodded, rubbing his eyes. “I…I…thank you.” He rasped. “I’ll…I need to…Sarah wanted to play Mario Kart.”

He bolted from the kitchen and James sighed. “He’ll be okay,” he said, “give him another day or so until you try hanging out with him again, but he’ll be okay. Don’t hurt him like that again or I’ll have you thrown into a cell at the Triskellion.”


	21. 2013469

Darcy loved her goofball husband, and not only because he could hit the same place every time without fail, though that was a factor.

She loved his humour, she loved his commitment to SHIELD, his commitment to their children, even though they were both going insane because of their triplets, his commitment to the Avengers even after his retirement as Hawkeye, and of course, his commitment to her.

And sometimes, she just looked at him and wondered what the hell was going through her head when she told him yes when he got on one knee in her OB/GYN’s office with their eldest son flittering as a grey blob on the ultrasound scan.

“Clint!” She shouted as she walked into the mansion, “I’m home!”

She’s been in Iceland; which was a frankly stupid name for a country. She was sure at some point in history a bunch of assholes, likely Viking assholes, sat down with a map and said ‘you know what would really piss people off?’; visiting Dr Selvig, who was teaching at a university there about Norse Mythology, and had been gone for almost three months.

“Mommy!” Hunter, Fletcher and Phillip exclaimed as the appeared. Darcy hardly batted an eye at their appearance and they hugged her. “Mommy! Daddy threatened to kill us again!”

“What did you three do?” Darcy sighed, “did you put fish in your brother-in-law’s sock drawer again?”

“Us?” One of the triplets said in faux shock, “we would _never_ , Mommy.”

“Uh-huh,” Darcy said, “Clint!”

“Daddy’s busy,” another triplet smiled. “He’s a bit strung up right now.”

“Oh god,” Darcy sighed and rubbed her temple. “Where’s your father?”

“We dunno,” the last triplet answered.

Darcy folded her arms and raised an eyebrow. “Do I need to get Spangles to drill you again, boys?”

They paled almost comically. “Upstairs,” one said, “east wing hall closet. It was Fletcher’s idea.”

He pointed at another triplet, and the triplet glared at his brother. “I’m Hunter!”

“No, I’m Hunter!” the first triplet yelled.

“I am!”

“Well I’m not Phillip!” The third triplet announced.

Darcy sighed again and went to look for her husband.

She found him quite literally strung upside down by…was that taffy?

“Hi Honey,” Clint grinned. “I’m in a bit of a sticky situation.”

“Is that taffy?” Darcy asked.

“Taffy bomb,” Clint explained. “We need to get Tony to Hoodwink Proof his lab.”

Darcy smiled and rolled her eyes. “I was hoping for some Welcome Back sex,” she told him, and he groaned. “But it looks like I’m going to need to cut you out of your clothes instead of ripping them off you.”

“I’m going to murder those three one day,” Clint whined. “By the way, if you start seeing doubles of Steve, Tony, Tash, Yasha, Bruce and me, they’re not clones, they’re from an alternate universe.”

Darcy just stared at him, “like the Steve and Tony who were here eleven years ago?” She asked as she cut through his t-shirt.

“These two hate each other as well. Actually, Anthony, that’s what we call Tony’s Alt, is practically everyone’s punching bag.” Clint explained sadly. “In the battle last week the Avengers played Possum and the Alts went out to help and they did a good job, but Steven, who looks _twelve_ , by the way, got angry at Anthony for saving a school bus of kids instead of staying in the air and helping Clinton, my Alt. Then they all got up each other and Steven punched Anthony.”

“You leave for two months and everything happens,” Darcy shook her head and began working on his jeans.

“You could suck me off while you’re there,” Clint said.

“I’ve got scissors, very sharp scissors, close to your manhood, Clint,” she said. “And I have many grad students lining up to sleep with me. Be careful.”

“Yes Dear,” Clint swallowed. “So, Spangles and Shell head got between them and broke them apart, then Spangles let Anthony go back to the mansion with our Avengers and our Avengers ripped the Alts fifty new ones about abusing Anthony. That was about a week ago and the Alts have apologised about being assholes and Anthony’s forgiven them.”

Darcy cut Clint’s jeans to the knees and gave him a tug by the hips.

He slipped out of the taffy trapped denim and landed on his head with a _THUNK_.

“Ow.” He whined as he sat up, rubbing his head, “that hurt.”

“You want me to kiss it better, Birdy?” She grinned.

“It’s not that head I want you to kiss,” Clint replied. “When was the last time we did it in a closet?”

“Ten years ago, it resulted in the boys,” Darcy replied, and Clint paled.

“The bed it is then!” He declared as he pulled her out of the closet in nothing but his boxers and socks.

“It’s a testament to how screwed up my life is that this,” Kate said as she gestured to her half naked Dad, “doesn’t even repulse me anymore. Though I wish someone else would walk around like that. Preferably Aaron. Or James, I’m not picky.”

Darcy rolled her eyes at the strangled sound Clint made. “She’s fifteen years old, Bird Brains,” she said.

“And those two are twenty-seven and twenty-six years old,” Clint replied. “She should still be playing with barbie dolls.”

“Ew.” Kate made a face. “Go do the do, I’ll be downstairs hoping for a pair of shirtless super soldiers.”

“Ew.” Clint made the same face and Darcy sighed at him, “What are you going to do when she gets a boyfriend?”

“Shoot him.” Clint replied instantly. “Unless he’s…”

“The only person in the world you would think is good enough for her is Spangles,” Darcy said, “handsome, intelligent, rich, respectful and military.”

Clint scowled at her and she raised an eyebrow at him, “I thought we were going to bed?”

“Yes, yes we were,” Clint said. “Come on.”

He tugged her along again and Darcy rolled her eyes at him again.

“Goofball.” She muttered, but grinned like a lunatic. “My goofball.”


	22. 2013469

Tony woke as Steve’s lips pressed against the first knob of his spine, tongue swirling over his skin and sending shivers through Tony with every press and swirl as Steve worked his way up Tony’s back.

He arched as Steve nipped at his skin and whined. “’S early…” he mumbled.

Steve chuckled between his shoulder blades and cuddled up to him, “you’re warm,” he rumbled.

Tony rolled onto his side, back to chest with Steve, his head resting on Steve’s arm, as Steve curled his other arm around Tony’s waist and pressed a kiss to Tony’s neck.

Tony smirked. “You’re certainly in a good mood this morning,” he said, “any particular reason?”

“You know exactly what today is, Sweetheart,” Steve replied against Tony’s pulse, “Twenty-eight years ago today I met the geeky little Carrier genius son of my friend and he changed my life forever.”

Tony blushed and let Steve’s fingers trace invisible swirls over the skin of his belly and chest. “Twenty-eight years ago today I met the Sire who I was content to have as my friend for the rest of my life.” He said softly.

Steve kissed his pulse and Tony gasped as Steve’s hand wrapped around him. “You know the first thing that ran through my head when I saw you in Fury’s office for the first time? Hair a mess, glasses wonky and wearing too tight ripped jeans, a t-shirt with a band name I’d never heard of and sneakers?”

“Wha?” Tony panted as Steve’s very talented fingers worked his entrance open.

Steve bit down on his neck and started sucking a _very_ visible hickey into his skin with a growl, “ _mine_.”


	23. MCU Tony

When James and Aaron dragged in a wheezing, sweat soaked Steve into the common room around lunch time Tony had a half mad thought that the pair had broken Steve’s ribs.

“Never…” Steve wheezed, “gonna…tease…Sam…again…about…running…”

Tony blinked.

They’d tired _Steve_ out. _Running_.

Tony laughed until he cried and Steve glared at him from where he collapsed on the floor.

“Next time,” Steve panted. “Take him running.”

“We _like_ Tony,” James said as Aaron nodded. “You we’re a little iffy about.”

Tony grinned smugly and Steve would have huffed most likely.

If he could breathe.

“Where’s Dad and Pops?” James asked as he tossed Steve a bottle of water. It bounced off the floor and landed near Steve’s head.

Steve groaned.

“SHIELD,” Tony answered. “Something about Rookie Agents using the weapons in the Hall?”

“Meaning some Young Avenger fans wanted to see our old stuff,” Aaron said, “Bucky.”

“Don’t call me that,” James snapped instantly.

“Would you prefer Binky?” Aaron winked.

James rolled his eyes.

Suddenly, Bucky ran in and clung to Steve, shaking horribly, and the all frown in concern.

“I…I…I was…alone…I couldn’t…I didn’t know…I was…I didn’t know where…I got lost…” Bucky stuttered out before he started hyperventilating and sobbing violently as he clung even tighter to Steve.

“Hey,” Steve tried to soothe the assassin, “you’re okay. You’re okay, Buck…”

Tony scooted closer to the pair and placed his hand tentatively on Bucky’s back. The ex-assassin pressed into the touch and Tony said, “I could…show you how to get back to the common room from anywhere in the mansion…if you want?”

Bucky pulled back slightly and blinked at Tony, still sniffling as tears slipped down his cheeks. “I’d…I’d like that,” he whispered.

Steve was staring at Tony with wide eyes and Tony blushed slightly and looked away, shrugging.

“I wanna help,” he admitted, “and I can show you all the places where you can hide and scare Clint out of his skin.”

Bucky laughed softly, and suddenly James’ watch and the star on Aaron’s arm beeped and began flashing red.

The pair hardened and sharpened, shifting from civilian goof balls to war heroes and soldiers.

“What’s going on?” Steve asked.

The pair turned back to him as they left the room, “HYDRA,” was all they said.


	24. 2013469

James bounced on the balls of his feet as the Quin-Jet approached the drop off point.

“Cap!” Williams called, “what’s the play?”

James fiddled with the buckles of his uniform. “I’ll head down first and take out the lookouts,” he said, “Winter Soldier and Black Widow will follow exactly ten minutes after I depart and meet me here,” he pointed to the bow of the ship on screen, “where will confirm our positions and you’ll follow exactly one minute after confirmation and take out the remaining enemy agents while Winter Soldier, Black Widow and myself find and contain the weapon supposedly on the ship. Remember, no civilian casualties.”

“You got that, Agents?” Aaron barked.

A chorus of ‘yes sir’s echoed through the Quin-Jet.

James glanced over at Rebecca, strapping a gun to her thigh, “so, how’s your boyfriend?” He asked, “Matt? Mark?”

“Mike?” Rebecca said, “we broke up.”

“Sorry to hear that,” James said, “why’d you break up?”

“The main one was he felt inferior dating a woman with better training than most Marines,” Rebecca smirked, “and he said my heart wasn’t in the relationship. Apparently he thinks I care about someone else.”

“Any idea who?” James tried to keep his voice steady and felt Aaron’s eyes bore into him. Aaron was one of the few people in the world who knew the real reason James had broken up with Rebecca before he left for the War.

He got scared; scared of changing during the War and getting his heart broken when Rebecca broke up with him because he wasn’t the happy-go-lucky teenager she fell in love with.

Aaron had called him an idiot, but James had hurt Rebecca badly all those years ago.

She’d never forgive him for that.

“I don’t have a clue,” Rebecca shrugged, “probably someone a long time ago.”

“We’re at the drop off point,” Williams said, “Cap, you’re up.”

“Ten minutes,” James said sternly to Aaron, “no jumping the gun this time.”

Aaron grinned arrogantly, “sure thing, Cap.” He said.

“Keep him on this jet,” James turned to Rebecca, who smirked at him and his heartbeat quickened.

“Sure thing,” she cooed. “Go get ‘em.”

James nodded and pulled on his helmet, buckling the chin strap as the back door of the Jet opened.

“Hey!” Aaron shouted over the roar of the wind, “What’re we going to do about this training for the Alts?”

“You let me handle that!” James replied with a grin.

“Yeah, when was the last time I heard that?” Rebecca retorted. “I remember! When you broke every bone in your body ‘handling’ Abomination! I should put you on a leash!”

“That a promise?” James grinned.

“It might be!” Rebecca replied.

“Gotta fly!” James saluted and dropped from the plane.

* * *

 

Tony glanced up as James walked into his office and set a familiar-looking gun on his desk.

“Tesseract HYDRA weapons,” Tony said as he studied the gun, “WWII-era.”

James shook his head, “They’d just finished building this one when Aaron, Becky and I got into the lab,” he said, “They’re useless without the Tesseract, right?”

Tony picked up the weapon, frowning, “not exactly,” he said, “ARC Energy could power it, but it would take a fully operation ARC Reactor.”

“And the only Reactors small enough to power it are in the suits,” James said, “and in yours and Anthony’s chests.”

Tony nodded, “I’ll put this in the Weapons Vault and then I’ll head home. Are you coming back to the mansion or are you heading back to the Tower?”

“I’ll go back to the Tower,” James said, “I think I’ve gotten my point across to the Alts about Anthony. I’ll be back tomorrow to start their training, though.”

Tony nodded and James stood and leaned over Tony’s desk.

James’ lips pressed against Tony’s brow softly. “Love you, Daddy,” James breathed.

Tony reached up and stroked James’ hair, “I love you too, Baby,” he replied, just as quiet. “Good night.”

James grinned and left his office.


	25. MCU Tony

Tony didn't hear the Director come into the lab, he was so absorbed in trying to fix his damaged armour that the smaller man slipped in without him noticing for a few moments, and then he spotted the man standing a little ways behind him holding a squirming metal…thing.

“Are Aaron and James back yet?” Tony asked, taking in the Director’s much too large t-shirt, ratty jeans and wild hair.

The Director nodded, and those two bangs that constantly stuck out from his hairline bobbed. “They've gone back to the Tower for the night, but the team is coming here tomorrow to start training.” He said.

He moved quickly and sat beside Tony at the bench, the metal…thing squirming in his arms, and the Director shifted his glasses onto his face and studied Tony’s armour.

“This isn't repairable,” he said, “I’m sorry, there’s no hope for it.”

Tony sighed and shoved the gauntlet back into the pile of scrap, “I might as well give up on this training, then.” He said angrily. “Since I’m useless without my armour.”

The Director smacked him on the back of the head. Hard. “Idiot,” he glared, “you’re a whole lot more than _just_ your armour.”

Tony blinked at him, “how?” He asked, “I’m not…I can’t give them…I don’t have what you have…”

The Director just looked at him. “First,” he said, “I’m highly offended that you think all I’m good for is giving birth and flying the Iron Man armour. I expect better from myself.”

He jabbed Tony in the forehead, “second, you’re a genius, Genius. You can figure things out well before the other Avengers.”

“What?” Tony asked, confused. “I mean…what can I think of before a couple of Master Assassins, a Living Legend, a Demi-God and the fucking _Hulk_?”

The Director shifted the metal…thing in his arms and set it on the ground. It scuttled off and distantly, Tony heard DUM-E squeal happily.

“You’re the most human of the Avengers, you’re the one who’s going to remind them what they’re fighting for,” the Director told him softly, “but you’re also the one who’s going to have all the answers, you’re the only one who’s got the balls to challenge Steve when his plans don’t prioritise civilian safety, and it will happen, it has, that bullshit the other week? That shouldn’t have happened at all, not if the General had been there, not if your Steve was the man he’d be in five years.”

“You’re the guy who can talk all them down after a fight, when they’re high on adrenalin and their PTSD is going absolutely bonkers, you’ll talk them down, you’ll talk until they’re laughing and relaxed.” The Director continued, “you’ll talk your way out of a fight if you can, you don’t go looking for war or carnage or conflict, you’re the guy to remind the Avengers they’re not soldiers, Tony. I’ve been there, I’ve done it, and I’m _still_ doing it. You’re the civilian, and that’s something the Avengers have to be reminded they’re protecting some times.”

Tony swallowed thickly, he didn’t know he was crying until the Director pulled him into a tight hug and he crumpled, sobbing, in the Director’s arms.

He cried for a long time, he didn’t know how long but when he pulled away, still sniffling and shaking, he was so embarrassed.

The Director only smiled at him understandingly. “It’s good to let it out sometimes, you know?” He said softly as he smoothed Tony’s hair, “you should get some sleep. I’ll leave some food in the fridge for you if you wake up during the night, okay?”

Tony nodded and shakily stood, his knees weak, and the Director wrapped an arm around his shoulders.

Tony leaned into his double as the smaller man helped him up the stairs to his bedroom.

“If you need anything, just ask JARVIS,” the Director told him as he pulled the covers up over Tony’s body.

Tony nodded and closed his eyes.

Just before he drifted off, the Director pressed a kiss to his forehead.

 

 

_He’s in Afghanistan. It’s dark. There are people shouting at him in a language he doesn’t understand._

_“No!” He screams, and there’s fingers in his hair and suddenly, he’s underwater, it’s ice cold and he can’t breathe. His lungs burn…they burn…he can’t breathe…_

_He screams but no sound comes out._

 

Tony woke with a scream he could hear and there’s someone holding him down.

He thrashed violently against them but they were stronger than him and he couldn’t break free.

“Tony!” They cried. “Tony! Tony!”

His blurred vision cleared slowly and he was staring up at Steve, no…the General and the Director was peering over the General’s shoulder in concern.

“Are you back with us, Tony?” The General asked gently, with the calmness and concern of someone who’s done this a thousand times. Tony realised then that the General was pinning him and he nodded.

The General released his wrists and Tony instantly curled in on himself, letting out a tiny, choked sob.

He makes another, similar sound when the General gathered Tony into his arms and held Tony tight, chin tucked over Tony’s head as he rubbed Tony’s back and whispered, “You’re okay, Tony. We’re not judging you. We’re only here to help you,” over and over again as Tony sobbed pitifully.

He was _humiliated_.

But it only took a few minutes for Tony to relax in the General’s arms and the Director’s fingers threaded through his hair as the smaller man asked, “would you like to stay with us tonight?”

Tony swallowed thickly, “I don’t…I don’t want to be a liability…” He whispered.

“Shush, its fine,” the General said softly, “you could never be a liability, Tony, _ever_.”

Tony was still shaking, horrible shaking, but he nodded, “I want to walk there…” he said. “I don’t…I don’t want to be carried.”

The General nodded and Tony slipped out of the older  man’s warm embrace, shivering now, alone, nothing grounding him, but then the General took his hand and squeezed it gently as the Director wrapped an arm around Tony’s waist with a smile.

The pair led him to their bedroom slowly, seeming to know that Tony’s legs weren't working properly, and when they got there, the General pulled Tony down onto the bed, his head pillowed on the older man’s chest as the Director curled around him from behind, his arm a band of grounding heat around Tony’s belly.

“You’re not a liability, Tony,” the General whispered. “You’re _never_ a liability, Tony.”

Tony sniffled and burrowed into the General’s chest.

He fell asleep a few minutes later. It was the best night’s sleep he’d had in years.


	26. Chapter 26

Steve woke up early and went down to the kitchen to find Clint making breakfast and they nodded to each other as Steve entered.

He was half way through his coffee when Natasha slinked in and said, “Stark spent the night with the Director and the General in their room.”

Steve felt sick at first of Tony’s ‘actions’, and then he became furious and disgusted in him. How could he? He couldn’t keep it in his pants for just a little while?

Tony walked in with the General, laughing at something the General had said, and Steve glared at him.

“You slut,” he spat at the smaller man.

Tony blinked at him as the General’s eyes narrowed.

“What’re you talking about, Steve?” Tony asked, confused, and Steve laughed bitterly.

“I should have known it wouldn’t take long for you to get yourself a quick fuck, Stark,” he spat as he crowded Tony against the wall. “You make me _sick_! You’re a whore and a slut, Stark! Were you going to go after Bucky? It that the reason you want to show Bucky around the mansion so you can screw him?”

He was just so _angry_ and _alone_ and he knew he shouldn’t be taking his anger out on Tony, but he needed someone to blame for everything and Tony was just _there_ and so easy to blame!

Tony’s eyes widened, terrified and angry, and Steve opened his mouth, more abuse about to spill from his tongue, when a hand clamped onto his shoulder in a painfully tight grip and suddenly, he was slammed against the wall hard enough to put a hole in the plaster.

It was James, his eyes were burning yellow with an edge of red and his pupils were slitted like a cat’s. There was hate in those eyes.

James slammed him against the wall again, snarling. “You’d better have a fucking good reason for calling Tony all those things when all Tony’s been is nice to you since the battle, Rogers!” He hissed.

“Stark slept with the General and the Director, the slut!” Steve spat at the taller man.

James’ head snapped around to the General, who was gently holding a shaking Tony against his chest. “Anthony had a very bad nightmare last night and Tony and I let him stay with us to keep an eye on him. It was just sleeping, none of us had any intention of doing anything but that, Cricket.” He said calmly.

Steve was still angry, he was shaking with it, but James’ hand unclenched from his shoulder. “Training starts in half an hour,” the taller man said as he began to leave.

Steve turned to Tony, who was no longer in the General’s arms, and spat, “I can’t believe such a good, honest man like Howard could raise such a cruel, selfish, empty man.”

The Lion that appeared where James had been was huge, the size of a bear, with golden fur and a thick black mane. His eyes burned red and he snarled with rage as he whirled on Steve, every line of that powerful body radiating hate.

Steve backed away, terrified, as the Lion stalked him into a corner. “Stop! He yelled, “I said stop! Stop!”

The Lion only continued towards him, snarling and growling, eyes aglow with hate, until…

Until _Tony_ slipped between them, “James, _stop_.”


	27. MCU Tony

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello!  
> Pieri_Ali, I'm sorry about making you cry! But it gets worse before it gets better, sorry! And I think James would if he didn't need to teach Steve a lesson. Thank you for your comments!  
> Turtletails, Steve's a dick, I know. Thank you for your comments!  
> The_Unfocused_Edge, I bet they would if they could, but the Avengers need Tony. Thank you for your comments!  
> Lavanyalabelle, I hate this Steve too, he is a horrible person. Thank you for your comments!  
> Michelle? red*robin? superhusbandfeels? throughdarkness? Where are you my darlings? I miss you and your thoughts! Come back to me!  
> (There will be longer chapters in the future as much as possible. I promise.)

Tony didn’t know why he was doing this, but he knew he had to. Steve is his teammate and the Director said he could talk them down, that he knew what words to say, what tone of voice to use to calm them down.

He slipped between Steve and the Lion, James. “James, _stop_ ,” he said firmly.

James paused for a moment, and then tried to step around Tony but Tony stopped him. “James, _stop_ ,” he said again.

James gave him a quizzical look, and then tried to butt Tony away, but Tony stayed where he was.

James gave him that quizzical look again, and suddenly the Director was beside James, arms around his neck as he murmured in Italian so quickly Tony couldn’t make out a single word, and James suddenly started backing away and morphed back, kneeling on the ground as the Director stroked his hair and kept murmuring to him in Italian.

James stood after a moment, slotting himself between Steve and the Director, breathing heavily, and said, “I can’t train someone who isn’t willing to work with one of the best members of his team.”

“You can’t train a team without its leader!” Steve snapped.

The look James gave Steve was colder than ice, “a leader is someone who works with what he has,” he said flatly, “utilises his team’s individual skills. He doesn’t ignore them entirely until he needs someone to blame.”

Steve began to protest, stepping towards James, and Tony, and James was suddenly in front of Tony too, snarling. “You should be _ashamed_ to wear the uniform and carry the shield!”

“You once said ‘I don’t like bullies’, Rogers, and you’ve become the one thing Captain America is supposed to stand against, the big, scary bully picking on the little guy!” James growled, “If you don’t start acting like the Leader you’re supposed to be, you can forget about ever going home!”

**Author's Note:**

> Don't be shy in leaving your thoughts! I love comments!  
> Tumblr: http://ask-stony-family.tumblr.com


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